Digimon: Digital Monsters
by starauthor23
Summary: Chapter 29: The Castle is up! Impmon leads Cameron to Myotismon's castle to find the answers he seeks. Meanwhile, the other DigiDestined continue to search for their lost friends. R&R please!
1. The Digital World

**CHAPTER ONE**

**The Digital World**

Blake let out a sigh of content. The grass was so soft, the breeze was so cool, the environment so relaxing. Living in a big city was a tiring thing, and this country getaway a few miles from the city was the perfect location for his relaxing summer camp.

Blake had originally decided to read a book, and had climbed a tree. Sitting on a branch, he tried to make himself comfortable enough to focus on his book, but to no avail. So Blake got back down, returned the book to his cabin, and succumbed to slumbering in the sweet grass of the field.

Blake was very tall for his thirteen years of age, already an inch away from being six feet tall. He had short brown hair, short enough to lack any particular style. He wore a white shirt underneath his baggy sky-blue button-up collared shirt. Whenever he wore this shirt, he preferred to leave it unbuttoned to expose his shirt underneath. He enjoyed when the shirt caught the breeze and billowed behind him. His khaki cargo shorts added to his casual clothing, which complimented his carefree attitude. He wore running shoes and a thin silver necklace. His blue eyes were cool and gentle.

Blake closed his eyes, enjoying the utter relaxation of his green environment. He was at church camp with his best friends in the world. He could hear light chatter coming from the mess hall, but many people had decided to relax, as he had. This was the third day of camp and everyone was a bit fatigued. They had come on Monday and would be making the short trip home on Friday, but today was Wednesday.

Blake's mind was left free to wander, and it did. His thoughts eventually and inevitably turned to the strange happenings going on in the world. Tokyo had been washed in a sea of stuff like chocolate sauce, Florida was getting snowstorms, and his home city had record amounts of rain, beating the two other top years combined in just the past month. Flooding was terrible. All of these things were baffling and unseasonable, not to mention other things in other places of the world. Strange weather for June.

"Wierd," Blake muttered to himself.

"What is?" came a girl's voice.

Blake shifted, looking at the source of the question. It was Becca, one of his best friends. She was pretty tall, though not near as tall as he, and had shining blonde hair cut shoulder-length. She was wearing a light blue t-shirt with a dark blue heart in the middle, and jeans, and tennis shoes.

Becca had a companion: Meggy. She had brown hair, a bit shorter than Becca's, and she was wearing a pink tank top and jeans and a pair of tennis shoes. Becca was thirteen, and Meggy was twelve.

"What's so wierd?" Meggy repeated Becca's question.

"I was just thinking," Blake said groggily, not feeling like talking about it.

"Whatever," Meggy replied.

Blake stood up, wiping grass off his butt. Then he shuddered as something icy cold touched the back of his neck. He reached back to feel what it was and touched cold wetness. "What the-?"

"Look at that!" Becca cried, her finger following something that was apparently coming down to them. Blake and Meggy followed her direction and saw, to their disbelief, a snowflake.

The snowflake drifted slowly, lazily, getting smaller and smaller in the hot summer sun. It was disappearing, but what was left of it fell as if it belonged to summer and there was nothing strange about it being here.

"Snow," Meggy whispered in awe.

"Hey guys!" the three heard someone call. They looked to see who it was and saw four boys running towards them. Casey was at the lead, with his brother Rainey close behind, and Adam and Cameron following those two.

Casey was tall, between Becca and Blake's height. He had short dark brown hair and tanned skin. He was very atheletic. He wore a green sleeveless shirt and navy blue atheletic shorts. He was fourteen and a grade above everyone else, going into eigth grade.

His brother, Rainey, had light brown hair that came straight down to stop just above Rainey's eyebrows. Rainey was shorter and younger than everyone else, being twelve years old and a grade behind, going into sixth grade. He wore a bright red shirt and red atheletic shorts with a blue stripe going down both sides.

Adam was affectionately named Mouse by Blake. He was very short and had short brown hair pushed up in the front. He was only twelve, but was going into the seventh grade like most of the others. He wore a yellow t-shirt with a blue t-shirt underneath that stuck out at the bottom and at the ends of the sleeves. He wore khaki shorts.

Cameron was a brain. He had glasses and short brown hair. He was very skinny and wore a whitish-blue colored button up shirt with the sleeves pushed to his elbows. He too donned khaki shorts. He was twelve, but was going into eigth grade. In eigth grade, he was going to be given special treatment, going to the high school every day for math.

"What's up?" Rainey asked as the four of them ran up to Blake, Becca, and Meggy.

"We just saw snow," Blake admitted, feeling his face burn from embarassment. It wasn't belivable.

Just as Blake expected, Adam said, "Yeah right!"

"Shut up, Mouse!" Blake replied. "It's the truth."

"I believe him," Cameron said in an awed tone. They all started and this and looked at him. He was gazing intently at the sky beyond them. They turned and saw a skyful of snowflakes coming to meet them.

"Whoa!" Casey cried. "No way!"

They cried out as a chill wind swept through their midst like a cold knife. Then snow was falling heavily around them. They wrapped their arms around themselves, shivering and huddling together. It took only a minute to cover the ground with a thick layer of snow and still it fell. This was no longer either a peaceful or warm day at summer camp.

"What's going on?" Becca screamed over the gale. The wind howled past, trying to snatch her words away.

"I don't know!" Blake yelled.

"This is impossible!" Cameron cried out. "This can't be happening! It's summer!"

There was a loud searing sound as light flooded the area. They all screamed, their eyes stinging from the sudden light. Temporarily blinded, they wrenched their eyes shut till their eyes quit aching. They then looked in the direction the light seemed to have come from.

Ther was a swirling vortex of light in the sky. "Those colors resemble the Aurora Borealis!" Cameron pointed out. And it was true. Their beautiful, shimmering, uncertain colors mystified the children. Then the seven branches of light that made up the vortex broke apart from each other and screamed towards the children.

The kids let out a yell as the comet-like whatevers rocketed towards them, one crashing into the snow at each child's feet. From the small holes that had been formed by the falling objects, light suddenly emanated brightly.

Seven balls of light slowly rose from the holes. They continued a slow path upward, each child snatching them from the air. Adam nearly snatched his too late, hopping slightly to reach it. The floating balls of light stopped glowing as soon as each child picked it out of the air.

The kids looked at the odd things in their hands. They were small white devices with a square screen in the middle of a circle.

"What is this?" Adam asked.

No one had the chance to answer, because a sudden roar swept away any possible reply. They screamed as they saw a wave of water completely and absolutely block out the horizon. It swooped down upon them, but their fear rooted them to the spot.

The wave washed them off of their feet, but they kept yelling. Suddenly, the ground was washed away, and all that could be seen was water. Water, everywhere!

Then they were falling. Falling between two walls of water shooting past on either side. Water with no beginning and no end, and they were simply falling, screaming, helpless, into darkness.

Soon, the water wall rushing past began to take shape. Individual water comets shot past the careening, falling children. The water comets morphed into numbers - ones and zeros. Soon, the ones and zeros changed into ovals streaming colored tails, and they began to squiggle up and down. The children rushed past all these, and when all that was left was darkness, it suddenly and unexpectedly rushed past as well.

The darkness quickly unravelled itself, shooting past and away from the kids. They were still falling, but now they beheld a small island, covered in lush vegetation, with gorgeous white beaches lining the edges of the beautiful ocean, which stretched to the horizon. The island had a mountain in the center.

The children were falling freely through the air, falling towards the forested island. They gasped in awe at first sight of the island, but had resumed their screams of fear when the realization sunk in that they were descending ever faster, falling to a mysterious island in the middle of nowhere, with no one and nothing that could catch them.

The trees rushed to meet them, as their screams pained their own throats and the wind ripped away their screams. They had been separated in the freefall, hitting different parts of the forest.

And then, branches and leaves were rushing past, slapping Blake in the face and arms and legs. And then the ground, appeared, rushing up to meet him, his screams futile, his eyes shut, praying for a miracle to save his life.

-

"Blake? Blake?"

He could hear a voice, a strange voice, small and high pitched, calling him from the void. In the darkness, Blake searched for the voice's owner. Who was calling him? How did they know his name?

"Blake?"

He remembered the grass. He remembered the snow. He remembered the water. He remembered falling through oddities never dreamed of. He remembered an island. And the ground rushing up to meet him head-on. He remembered.

"Blake?"

Was he dead? All he could see was darkness. But slowly, as if his consciousness had clicked on a few minutes before his vision, he saw light. Very faint light.

"Blake?"

Of course! His eyes were closed! So all Blake had to do was open his eyes. Open. Open!

And then, he could feel his eyelids raise. His eyes were open. But all he could see was gray.

Slowly, ever so slowly, green appeared, and then brown in the center of his vision.

He was in a forest, with thick, lush vegetation and trees all around. He could feel dirt underneath him. And there was a small creature sitting on his chest.

"Blake! You're awake!" the creature cried happily, its beady black eyes shining. It was a tiny brown ball with two eyes and a mouth and three horns on its head, on in front and two behind on either side. It also had a long tail stretching far behind it.

"What are you?" Blake cried in fear.

"Don't be scared, Blake!" the creature said happily.

"How do you know my name?" Blake asked.

"I'm destined to be with you," it said. "How could I not know your name!"

"Destined? Just who are you?" Blake sat up, and the creature bounced off, sitting on the ground by his left knee.

"My name's Conomon. I'm your Digimon! I've been waiting for you!"

"Waiting for me?" Blake got to his feet. "You look pretty harmless. I guess you aren't too dangerous. So, where are we?"

"We're in the Digital World."

"The Digital World? What's that?"

"It's just what it's called: a digital world."

"Okay," Blake said, running possibilities through his mind. "Six of my friends are here I think. We need to find them."

"Okay."

"Where could they be?" Blake began walking, with Conomon bouncing along behind him.

They walked through endless brush, past many trees, until they came upon a clearing and noticed two familiar faces.

Becca was standing there with a small round creature in her arms. It was white, with two round ears and shining black eyes. Adam was there too, with a creature who had blue eyes and two back swept antennae. It was shaped like an upside down teardrop, bouncing on the tip. It had two short stubs as arms and three tiny, not particularly dangerous looking horns on its back.

"Hey you guys!" Blake called as he and Conomon pushed through the brush and into the clearing.

"Hey!" Becca smiled. "Look Adam, he's got one too!"

"Bet we all do," Adam said. He pointed to the creature beside him. "This little guy is Pitmon."

"Introduce yourself," Becca said to the cute creature in her arms.

"My name is YukimiBotamon," it said in a high-pitched voice.

"My little guy is named Conomon," Blake said, smiling. "Conomon, this is Becca and Adam. Adam's nickname is Mouse."

"We were just about to go and look for everyone else," Adam explained.

"Then let's all go together," Blake said.

The three children walked off into the brush on the opposite side of the clearing from where Blake had entered. They walked a ways and found a dirt path.

"I wonder who made this path," Blake said.

"Do you know, Pitmon?" Adam asked his companion.

"No," Pitmon said, sorry that he couldn't help.

"Well, I guess we should just be thankful that it's here," Becca suggested.

"Good idea," came Cameron's voice. He and Meggy came out of the brush on the opposite side of the forest. They too had creatures with them.

"Hey!" Blake said happily.

"Looks like my theory was right," Cameron said. "They have them too. I'd bet Rainey and Casey will when we find them."

"Sure," Meggy said. "My little friend's name is Kapurimon." She motioned to a small creature behind her, who bounced out to where Becca, Adam, and Blake could see her. She had big, green eyes, a cat-like mouth and a black, wet nose. The upper half of its round body had a metal helmet on with eyeholes. The helmet had two horns sticking out of it. Kapurimon also had a long striped tail, colered with its gray fur and purple stripes.

Cameron motioned to his Digimon, an orange and red creature with deep blue eyes that was floating near Cameron's head. It looked like a hovering fire creature. "I am DemiMeramon," it introduced itself in a raspy voice.

"He scared me at first, untill I figured out he was here to help me," Cameron admitted.

A second after Cameron had said this, they heard someone yelling. They listened for a minute.

"That's Casey calling for Rainey!" Blake said. He ran down the path in the direction of Casey's voice, the creatures and his friends following him.

The pathway and trees opened up after only a minute of running onto a beautiful meadow with lush green grass and small yellow flowers. They saw Casey walking along the middle of the meadow with his hands up around his mouth to project his voice.

"Rainey!"

Casey turned and noticed the five children running towards him. "Hey!" he yelled, and they yelled greetings back to him. Blake noticed that there was a small white creature bouncing along behind Casey. When they finally got together, Casey introduced them to his monster.

"This is Zerimon," he said. The creature had sparkling black eyes, a large horn on its head, and a tail like Conomon's

"Casey!" The children heard Rainey yelling back and looked to see him running down a different path towards them. They all ran to greet him.

"Hey," he said when they'd come together. "Let me introduce you to my Digimon, Kokomon." He pointed to his creature. It had black eyes with three horns on its head like Conomon. It had ears, two that drooped down the sides of its head and curved outward slightly. It also had a lower body, but it was just a jelly-like mass that seemed to loosely conform to the surface it was sitting on.

The children all reintroduced their creatures to Rainey.

"You called your friend a Digimon," Casey observed. "Why?"

"I remember when I first came to and met Conomon, he mentioned Digimon," Blake said, thinking back.

"That's right," Conomon said, bouncing up and down. "I told you I'm your Digiomon."

"What does Digimon mean?" Meggy asked.

All seven creatures jumped in the middle of the circle of children and said in unison, "We're Digimon: Digital Monsters!"

"Digimon? Digital Monsters?" Adam said. "What does that mean?"

"I guess it means just what it says," Cameron said. "They're digital monsters. Digimon."

"We've been waiting for you!" YukimiBotamon squeaked.

"Waiting for us?" Becca asked.

Blake nodded. "Conomon said the same thing to me when I -"

Blake was cut off by an explosion coming from somewhere nearby. They saw smoke disappearing from a hole in one of the nearby treetops. An enormous red insect was flying towards them.

"That's Flybeemon!" Kapurimon shoted. "It's an insectoid-type Digimon with thick armor protecting it from attacks and cannons on its arms that shoot highly-explosive rounds!"

Flybeemon was red with a few gray stripes. It was flying with wings like a dragonfly's, and sure enough, it was covered in armor and had two cumbersome-looking cannons in place of claws.

"Look out!" Cameron yelled. "He's gonna fire!"

A ball of light hurtled towards the kids. They yelled out and scrambled in different directions, all holding their Digimon safely cradled in their arms. The shot hit right in the middle of where they'd been standing and caused a huge explosion.

"Run!" Blake yelled at everyone. "This way!" He turned and ran down the path Rainey had come from. Everyone followed him, and Flybeemon rocketed over their heads and off above the trees.

"We have to make as much distance as we can," Blake gasped. "Maybe Flybeemon will lose us!"

"I doubt that!" Cameron yelled. "And even if he does, he'll just fly up and spot us from the air!"

"What else can we do?" Becca cried vainly.

"We can turn and fight!" Conomon yelled. At that moment, they heard the buzz of Flybeemon's wings, coming up behind them very quickly.

"Look out!" DemiMeramon screamed, they all dodged to the right and the treeline to their left burst, showering splinters and stinging the children.

"That was close!" Rainey gasped.

"Keep going," Kokomon urged him and the others.

"We're gonna fight!" Zerimon cried, leaping from Casey's arms.

"Yeah!" the other Digimon cried, leaping from their owner's arms and towards Flybeemon.

"Bubble Blast!" they cried, one after the other. Each shot a shower of pink bubbles hurtling towards Flybeemon. They popped on Flybeemon's helmet, making him wince. His flight path wavered and he once more flew out of sight above the treetops.

"We scared him off!" Becca said happily.

"Don't celebrate yet," Adam said, pointing out the buzz of Flybeemon that could still be heard somewhere not too far off.

"Just keep going!" Casey gasped.

A few moments later they ran out into the open, crying out at the sudden absence of tree cover and the feel of rock under their shoes. They ran forward to a drop off.

They were on a cliff edge, staring down at a raging river.

"Oh no," Blake breathed.

They turned at the buzzing, an omen announcing Flybeemon's coming.

"We have no other choice," Casey said. "We have to fight. No matter what!"

Flybeemon appeared over the trees and landed, separating the kids and their Digimon from the forest. Separating them from protection.

"This is it!" Adam cried in vain.

"We'll protect you!" Zerimon called, jumping in between Flybeemon and the kids. The other Digimon did the same.

Flybeemon raised his cannon, preparing to attack. "Bubble Blast!" Conomon yelled, firing pink bubbles, the other Digimon following his lead.

Flybeemon winced, his gun wavering, as he was pummeled by pink bubbles. Then he corrected his aim.

"It's not enough!" Becca wailed.

"What are we going to do?" Meggy asked quietly.

"We're not going to give up!" YukimiBotamon tried to comfort Becca.

"We'll win!" Zerimon yelled.

"You're not strong enough," Blake slumped.

"Yes we are!" Conomon cried.

Suddenly, there was darkness. The light seemed to have gone away. They all looked to the sky, including Flybeemon. Circles of light appeared, and they came down from left to right, forming translucent light columns that covered the Digimon. In a matter of seconds, all seven little Digimon were inside their own personal light column.

Flybeemon's eyes widened, and it involuntarily took a step back.

"What's happening?" Blake asked in an awed voice. Then his head snapped around to look at the Digivice he'd strapped to his right side on the belt loop of his shorts. Everyone else had theirs clipped to them like him. They had drawn attention because they were beeping and their square screens were flashing rapidly. Then a burst of light emitted from each Digivice.

"Wha-?" Blake cried, then the Digivice's light intensified. He looked at his Digimon, sitting in the glowing light, now glowing himself, then something incredible happened.

"Conomon, Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Gizamon!"

"Zerimon, Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Prairiemon!"

"Kapurimon, Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Rabbitmon!"

"DemiMeramon, Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . DemiDevimon!"

"YukimiBotamon, Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Otamamon."

"Pitmon, Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Kunemon!"

"Kokomon, Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Lopmon!"

Before their eyes, their Digimon had changed, or Digivolved.

"They're bigger!" Blake cried in awe.

"What happened?" Casey wondered.

Conomon had become Gizamon, an orange furred, yellow skinned, four legged creature. It had intense blue eyes, a wide mouth, and four stubbly legs with three webbed, black claws on each foot. Gizamon also had four spikes of different sizes sticking out of its back, going from largest to smallest. Conomon's high-pitched voice had become deeper and slightly raspy.

Zerimon had become Prairiemon, a prairie dog monster with huge metal claws on its hands. The claws were long and thin and sharp, and there were three on each hand. It had long ears sweeping down its back and almost touching the ground, and it had a short tail and sparkling black eyes. Its voice had become higher pitched.

Kapurimon had become Rabbitmon, a white rabbit with pink armor on. It had big green eyes and long ears that swept back and curved downward. Its voice had gotten higher-pitched.

DemiMeramon had become DemiDevimon, a small round bat with a black mask that had a skull on it in between and slightly above its two yellow eyes. It had bat wings and taloned feet. Its voice had lost its raspiness and become slightly higher-pitched.

YukimiBotamon had become Otamamon, a small blue tadpole with tiny back legs and clawed front legs. It had big eyes and a tail with webbing at the end. Its voice had gone from super high-pitched to pretty high-pitched.

Pitmon had become Kunemon, a yellow caterpillar with two streaming yellow antennae, a big blue beak and a huge blue stinger. Its voice was almost the same.

Kokomon had become Lopmon, a small, brown, rabbit-like creature standing on two legs. It had small brown eyes and three horns on its head, two small ones in front and a big one in the back. It had two long ears that could touch the ground, with pink tips. It had short arms and legs tipped with pink with black fingers and toes. It had basically the same voice.

"Gizamon?" Blake asked tenatively. "What happened to you?"

"We Digivolved," Gizamon explained, never letting his eyes leave Flybeemon. "Now we're a level stronger. We'll beat Flybeemon this time!"

"Go!" Blake yelled triumphantly.

"Attack!" Gizamon commanded.

"Stun Bubble!" Otamamon let loose a burst of blue bubbles that stung Flybeemon, making him step back.

"Electro Thread!" Kunemon opened his beak and a streak of electricity leaped from his beak and shocked Flybeemon.

"Giza Destroyer!" Gizamon opened his mouth. There was an orange light that rapidly flashed, then a fireball exploded towards Flybeemon, creating a blast that sent him stumbling back a few steps.

"Rabbit Bomber!" Rabbitmon unleashed her own firball, hitting Flybeemon on a shoulder and knocking it off balance.

"Demi Dart!" DemiDevimon shot an arrowhead of dark stuff that stung Flybeemon.

"Thunder Claw!" Prairiemon's claws glowed electric blue and he sent electricity waves that pushed Flybeemon back against a tree.

"Blazing Fire!" Lopmon sent a small fireball towards Flybeemon that exploded unexpectedly in a deep orange flame that burned on Flybeemon's armor for a few seconds.

But Flybeemon was still there. It raised its gun, pointing it at the kids, preparing to fire.

"No!" Rainey said.

"How could he?" Cameron cried.

"All together!" Gizamon called. "Giza Destroyer!"

"Stun Bubble!"

"Electro Thread!"

"Blazing Fire!"

"Rabbit Bomber!"

"Demi Dart!"

"Thunder Claw!"

All seven attacks lanced towards Flybeemon, hitting their target. The kids watched anxiously as the smoke cleared, their Digimon panting.

They saw Flybeemon. He survived! But he was on his knees, panting, in obvious pain. Then his wings buzzed and he shot off into the sky, leaving a cloud of dust behind him and disappearing from sight in only a few seconds.

"You did it!" Blake yelled. The Digimon rushed back to the kids leaping into their arms. The kids thanked their Digimon, and the Digimon celebrated with the kids.

"That's it!" Blake said, smiling. Gizamon was beaming in his arms. "This place might be wierd and dangerous, but now our Digimon will protect us!"

"There's nothing to be scared of," Cameron nodded, DemiDevimon perched on his shoulder. "It's okay now."

Becca sighed contentedly. "Maybe this won't be so bad after all."


	2. Monochromon's Volcanic Strike

**CHAPTER TWO**

**Monochromon's Volcanic Strike**

"This forest goes on forever!" Rainey complained.

"Well, we're looking for a place to sleep tonight, and I'd like it to be out of this forest," Blake re-explained with very forced calm.

The kids had somehow been transported from a peaceful, hot day at summer camp into a strange forested world, called the Digital World, and met up with unique creatures called Digimon. Another Digimon, larger and more powerful than the kid's Digimon friends, attacked them and they fled through the forest. Their Digimon Digivolved, becoming bigger, and used their newfound power to scare the Digimon, Flybeemon, away. Since then, they'd been walking along the path through the forest, searching for a place to set down.

"Any place will be fine," Adam rationalized aloud, "as long as there's water nearby."

"DemiDevimon, do you think you can fly up into the sky and see if there's a river or something nearby?" Cameron asked his small dark colored Digimon.

"I'll try," DemiDevimon said, unsure. DemiDevimon's wings were small and weren't made for high flying, simply for keeping him aloft and not too far from the ground. But DemiDevimon wanted to bond with Cameron, and he figured that trying his hardest would be the best way to start.

"We'll wait here," Cameron reassured him as DemiDevimon flew beyond the treetops.

DemiDevimon pumped his wings hard, starting to sweat. He controlled his breathing, making sure he was breathing in and out, deep and slow. He grunted and cringed as he pushed himself higher. Perhaps if he had bigger wings . . .

"Gah!" DemiDevimon cried out as a cramp like a knife sliced into his side. But his mission was accomplished - somewhat. He saw the edge of the forest, less than an hour away, and he hoped that the gleam he had seen was a reflection off of water.

DemiDevimon dropped, resting in the short fall and then painfully spreading his wings to catch the wind and glide back down to the others. He flapped with excruciating pain in order to correct his course, and landed gratefully on Cameron's shoulder. He took a moment to breathe the air and relieve his cramp.

His teeth ground together and he stifled a yelp of pain. Quickly overcoming the pain so as to not let Cameron see his weakness and think less of him, he said, "I saw the edge of the forest, and I think there was water beyond the trees."

"About how far is it?" Cameron asked while DemiDevimon enjoyed a deep intake of air.

"I'm not good at judging distance," DemiDevimon admitted, "but it's gotta be less than an hour."

"Well, that's at least something," Blake sighed tiredly. The sun had begun to go down. "Which direction?"

"We're going the right way."

"Okay." Blake slumped slightly before regaining his composure. "Let's go. The sooner we get there, the sooner we rest."

After forty-five minutes of walking, the kids came out of the forest and beheld a welcome sight. There was a large, shining lake, glistening in the surprisingly long sunset. There was an island almost exactly in the middle of the lake with a small, thin strip of land connecting it to the shore.

"All right!" the kids and Digimon cried triumphantly.

"We can finally rest!" Meggy said tiredly but happily.

They all laughed gleefully, putting their fatigue aside for a moment to jog over to the strip of land and proceed onto the island. They plopped down thankfully onto the dirt of the island, relishing the rest their feet were finally getting.

"Is anybody else famished?" Adam asked.

Everybody loudly agreed, playing with the thought before circling up. "Now, what do we have to eat?" Blake asked eagerly, choosing not to acknowledge the fact that he had no idea where they could get some food.

"I have some," Becca said before anyone could admit their lack of food.

"You do?" the others asked.

"That's right," Becca replied. She laughed happily, proud of herself. She'd gotten a feeling that she should pack some extra snacks, and had therefore bummed plenty of apples, bananas, peach cups, and candy bars from the two meals they'd eaten at camp earlier this very day, back in the real world. She had put all these things in her backpack, along with some plastic spoons, forks, and knives, her three swimsuits, and some hygene necessities.

"Wow," Casey said, looking at everything that she'd pulled from her backpack.

"What made you think to get all this?" Adam inquired.

"I had a feeling," Becca admitted, not quite believing herself.

"I was wondering why you packed all that," Meggy said. "And why you were carrying it around."

"Okay, let's see what we have here," Cameron muttered. He began sorting everything into piles, each according to its own. After a while, he figured that they would have enough food to keep them content for four days. "If we eat just enough to go on, we'll be able to keep this food for that amount of time."

"And hopefully we'll find a way back home before we run out," Adam said quitely, caring not to consider what would happen if they didn't.

"Unfortunately," Cameron said, holding up a finger to silence everyone, "my calculations did not include the Digimon. That'll cut it down to about two days."

"That's okay," DemiDevimon reassured him from his perch on Cameron's shoulder. "We Digimon know how to do things."

"Yeah," Rabbitmon agreed. "We can fend for ourselves."

"We'll be able to pull up enough food to run on," Prairiemon said.

"We might even be able to find some to share with you guys," Kunemon considered. "After all, our fruit can be eaten by you just as it can be eaten by us."

"We'll have to try the native fruits," Cameron said, considering the possibilities.

"We can try little bits at a time," Blake rationalized. "If we make sure the fruit is good and safe for us to eat, then we can start stockpiling it so we'll always have some food for the Digimon in case they can't find any, and we'll have food in case we run out."

"Sounds like a plan," Otamamon agreed.

"What about your food for tonight?" Casey asked, looking at Prairiemon but directing the question to all the Digimon.

"We'll be fine," Prairiemon reassured him. "We can go one night without starving."

"If you think so," Casey said, worrying that his new friend wouldn't get enough nutrition.

"I promise, we'll be fine." Prairiemon gently placed one clawed hand on Casey's shoulder to reassure him.

"Let's eat!" Blake suggested loudly, and everyone agreed with a happy yell. They began grabbing all the different foods, with Cameron making sure no one overstepped their ration, and then went off to wash their hands and eat at the water's edge with their Digimon.

Blake and Gizamon watched as the light in the sky slowly faded away. They were seperate from everyone else. "How are you feeling, Gizamon?"

"I'm fine," Gizamon replied, looking at his partner questioningly. "Why?"

"I just wanted to check." Blake handed Gizamon an apple. "Here."

"We agreed that we'd find food tomorrow," Gizamon said, holding the apple out for Blake to take it back.

"No, Gizamon," Blake said. "That's from my ration. You can have it. I don't want you to go to bed on an empty stomach."

"Thanks," Gizamon said uncertainly. "Are you sure you're not gonna want this?"

"Very sure," Blake smiled. He ruffled the orange fur on Gizamon's head. "I'm more worried about you buddy. I don't eat much. You enjoy that apple."

Gizamon greedily dug into the apple with Blake watching him. Blake realized just how hungry he and his Digimon friends must be. He thought back to the fight with Flybeemon. Things were looking hopeless, but then everyone Digivolved. They made it look pretty easy, scaring Flybeemon off like they had, but now Blake was seeing, by watching Gizamon, just how much they'd put into that fight. He let a warm smile cross his face.

He ate a peach cup and a candy bar, which turned out instead to be a milk and cereal bar. He continued to think about all that had gone on when they were facing Flybeemon, and thus began to think much more highly of Gizamon.

His eyes were turned to the gently rippling lake water, but they weren't focused. His thoughts wandered to his conduct. Run. That was his command, and he led the retreat. The Digimon suggested that they should fight, but he tried to stop them. Only when it was fight or die had he allowed Conomon to fight. It had turned out well, but perhaps if he'd had a little courage, and maybe some faith in his mysterious new friend, then things would have turned out better.

He grimaced, thinking about how terrified he'd been. He'd given up. He'd accepted defeat, and waited for Flybeemon to blow him off the cliff and to his doom. But Conomon had exhibited the courage that Blake had not. He ended up becoming Gizamon and leading the fight against Flybeemon.

Blake fought back the tears, fighting back the anger at himself. Courage was all he'd needed. And instead he'd given up. He'd been so foolish, so hopeless, and all the courage had gone out of him. He made a silent vow to always have courage from this day forth.

"Thank you for the apple," Gizamon whispered to Blake and snapping him from his trance.

"You're welcome, Gizamon," Blake said cheerily.

They went back to the center of the island, where the others had congregated.

"We're gonna need a few things before we can set up camp," Casey was saying. "We should be able to find these things in the forest around here."

"Good," Becca said. She'd been worrying about how they were to sleep.

Then, an explosion shattered the peace. The children and the Digimon all looked around, frightened. They saw smoke clearing from a new hole in the treeline, and coming through the smoke was a familiar form.

"Flybeemon!" they all shouted in disbelief.

"He's back!" Becca cried in fear.

"Get back!" Otamamon ordered her. "We'll protect you!"

Two more explosions cracked through the air. They shot looks to their sides, seeing huge upheavals of water falling back to the lake. Two more shots had been fired, causing explosions in the water. But the Flybeemon they'd had their eyes on hadn't fired even one shot, much less two.

"What the-?" Cameron cried, spinning around and seeing two more Flybeemon heading towards them from the other direction. Their cannon barrels were smoking, telling Cameron that it was they who had fired the two shots.

"There's two more!" DemiDevimon shouted before Cameron had the chance.

Everyone either spun around or alternated between looking ahead at Flybeemon, then back to the two new Flybeemon.

"We barely scared off one Flybeemon when we poured on all our power!" Meggy cried. "What do we do now?"

Blake was terrified. He hadn't seen this coming. They'd won! But Flybeemon hadn't been defeated, just temporarily outed. Now there was three times the trouble. But Blake also thought to the vow he'd made to himself while eating. He had to have courage. Maybe, just maybe, him showing courage would give everyone else courage.

But that didn't change the fact that there were three now. Courage might be important, but it wasn't going to beat three Flybeemon. "We have to stand strong!" Blake said courageously, despite all logic screaming at him to run, flee, do something other than fight a battle that wasn't winnable in any way.

"Blake, we can't fight!" Rainey cried. "We'll get our butts kicked! We have to run! That's the only way we'll survive!" But the pleas fell on deaf ears.

"Go Gizamon!" Blake called, and Gizamon courageously bounded forward.

"Giza Destroyer!" he called, shooting a burst of flame that streamed towards one Flybeemon. The buzz emitted by its wings increased in volume very slightly, and suddenly it shot up and out of harm's way. Gizamon's attack continued to the treeline, where it collided with a tree, causing a massive explosion.

"Man, they're fast!" Blake said. "Keep it up, Gizamon!"

"Right!"

Three explosions on the lake caused huge pillars of water to rise up. The Flybeemon were swooping around so fast that they were nothing but red blurs.

Everyone else's Digimon had joined in the battle, really not having any choice otherwise. Their attacks streaked out at the blurs, but all were unsuccessful. The Flybeemon continued to bombard the lake with blinding explosions of water, but no shots even hit the small island.

"Of course!" Cameron said after a few explosions. "The Flybeemon are flying around quickly so we won't be able to hit them, but in turn, they can't aim right. They're going too fast for themselves!"

"Yeah!" Casey yelled triumphantly, realizing how very rational Cameron's statement was. "Just keep up the attacks, Prairiemon!"

Prairiemon glanced at him, nodding. "Thunder Claw!" he cried, swiping his enormous claw and sending a bolt of electricity waving through the air. The aim was good, but once more, the Flybeemon dodged and the lightning shot harmlessly into the thick trees.

"Darnit!" Blake muttered through clenched teeth.

"Rabbit Bomber!" Rabbitmon called, sounding exhausted. The large, orange-red ball of energy seemed to power up in slow motion, and even when Rabbitmon launched it, it seemed sluggish.

"Rabbitmon!" Meggy cried worriedly. "Are you okay?"

Upon further inspection, Meggy saw that Rabbitmon's fur was matted with sweat. She was panting, trying to build up enough strength to attack again, once more unsuccessfully. Meggy looked around. All the Digimon seemed to be slowing, showing very obvious signs of exhaustion. All except Gizamon.

Gizamon continued jumping around, firing strong, large fireballs. All missed, just as all their Digimon's attacks had, but Gizamon was the only one who didn't seem to be slowly declining.

Finally, Rabbitmon collapsed, and Meggy ran to her. She heard Casey call out, "Prairiemon! No!" and figured that Rabbitmon wasn't the only one out of juice.

Soon, only Gizamon was left fighting. Everyone else had stopped from exhaustion. Blake acknowledged the fatigue of the other Digimon, but didn't stop cheering Gizamon on. His cheers still sounded the same as they had when Gizamon was attacking with everyone else.

"Keep it up Blake!" Meggy whispered, a fainted Rabbitmon breathing heavily in her arms. "You can do it! You can find a way!"

"So weak!" Otamamon moaned in Becca's arms.

"Why?" Becca asked. "What's made you so tired?"

"Need . . . food," Otamamon choked out.

"Oh, Otamamon!" Becca wailed.

The Flybeemon had slowed. They saw all the other Digimon, unconcious or nearly so in their partner's arms. Gizamon was the only one putting up the fight, but his attacks weren't strong enough to beat three Digimon of the Champion level. Champions were a level higher than he, Gizamon being only a Rookie level Digimon.

The Flybeemon took aim, one giving a signal to the others that was imperceptible to the kids. On its signal, all three fired at once.

Blake screamed, more in shock than pain, as the explosions collided on the same spot just a few feet in front of him. He was swept from his feet and sent careening into the lake on the edge of the island.

"Blake!" Gizamon cried in anguish, imagining the worst.

"Blake, no!" Adam said, holding Kunemon closer and stifling his fear.

Blake pulled himself out of the water, panting slightly and wincing. The air had been punched from him when the blast occurred, and he was painfully struggling to get it back. "Gizamon," he gasped. "Go get 'em!"

Gizamon stared at him in disbelief. Then, Blake's encouragement sinking in, Gizamon's look changed to that of confidence and determination. He smiled at Blake and nodded, turning to once more face his hopeless fight.

"How dare you attack my friend!" Gizamon called. He barely noticed a brilliant light that suddenly appeared behind him, but Blake noticed. The blinding, pure white light was emitting brilliantly from the Digivice clipped to Blake's belt loop. He could feel the Digivice vibrating slightly, and the Digivice was also beeping madly.

Gizamon continued, oblivious. "I'm gonna make you pay for even daring to think you had any right to attack my buddy!" Then the light enveloped the entire area, and Gizamon's voice could be heard clearly above the roar of Flybeemon's wings.

"Gizamon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Monochromon!"

The light quickly faded, and Blake stared, awestruck, at the creature Gizamon had become.

He was huge, the size of a small house. He had thick gray skin covered with shining black armor. He looked like a dinosaur, a triceratops, but it only had one horn, an enormous horn that jutted from its armored snout. The armor had eyeholes, exposing determined, intense blue eyes. His mouth was open, displaying rows of sharp teeth. It stomped the ground with its front right foot, the three black claws causing a huge rumble.

The ground shook as the quadriped challenged the Flybeemon with his stomps. He let out a blodcurdling roar with a strong voice that seemed to have a growl built in. His tail swished swiftly, causing a great gust of wind that nearly knocked Blake, who'd gotten to his feet, back to the ground.

"Wow," he whispered in awe. "Gizamon Digivolved again!"

"I'm Monochromon now!" He growled. Then, letting out a roar, his eyes refocused to the Flybeemon. "Raah, Volcanic Strike!" A terrifyingly large fireball erupted violently from Monochromon's giant mouth and sped towards the Flybeemon, who'd been paralyzed with surprise and fear.

The Flybeemon mobilized, buzzing and shooting in different directions, but one wasn't fast enough. The flame hit him, sending him careening back and leaving a grand explosion in his wake.

"Slamming Attack!" Monochromon stormed across the narrow land bridge towards the fallen Flybeemon. He collided with Flybeemon, who was lying, slumped, against the tree he'd collided with. The tree snapped like a toothpick, and Monochromon tossed Flybeemon like a rag doll with his horn and a mighty flick of his head.

Flybeemon careened through the sky. "Volcanic Strike!" Monochromon launched another fireball, hitting dead on. The ensuing explosion shook the entire area. When the smoke cleared, there was no sign of the unfortunate Flybeemon.

The two other Flybeemon glanced at each other, making a quick decision, and then shot off double time.

"Yeah!" Blake cheered, jumping up into the air with his fist raised in victory.

Monochromon suddenly glowed with a yellowish-white light, and the light shrunk. In seconds, it faded, leaving an exhausted Gizamon laying slumped on the ground.

"Gizamon!" Blake cried, sprinting to his partner's side.

"Blake," Gizamon said weakly. "Did we win?"

"Yeah, buddy," Blake said, smiling. "You did it!"

"Good." He winced, weakness pulsing through his veins. "Blake?"

"Yes, Gizamon?"

"Do you think we have any more apples?"

"Of course, Gizamon," Blake said, chuckling. "You can have all the apples you want."


	3. Leomon The Beast King

**CHAPTER THREE**

**Leomon the Beast King**

"Monochromon is awesome!" Cameron exclaimed, slapping Blake on the back.

"Thanks," Blake replied bashfully.

"I thought we were gonners!" Meggy admitted. "But then Gizamon Digivolved! I didn't even know that it was possible for any of our Digimon to go to Champion level, but they did! Amazing!"

"Yeah, Gizamon sure pulled through," Blake said modestly, glancing fondly at Gizamon. Gizamon turned away, embarassed. He was really enjoying the praise.

After a sudden and unexpected attack on the camp that the children had made, Gizamon had Digivolved to a powerful dinosaur Digimon, Monochromon. Monochromon defeated the attacking Flybeemon and then reverted back to Gizamon, as he was now.

"So now what do we do?" Adam asked. "Should we stay here?"

"I don't think those Flybeemon are coming back any time soon," Blake said loudly with yet another proud look at Gizamon.

"Then we'll stay here," Becca said, sitting down.

"We need to build a fire before it becomes too dark," Blake said, converting back to a serious demeanor.

"That's right," Rainey said.

"Some of us are going to have to go into the forest to look for firewood," Blake continued. "I'll go. Who else?"

"I'll go," Meggy said, not really knowing why she'd said it.

"That's all that we really need to go," Blake said, thinking out loud.

"Everybody else can just play in the lake," Meggy suggested.

"We won't be able to do anything else until you get back, so yeah," Cameron agreed.

"Good," Casey said. He'd been silent, contemplating what had happened during the battle with the Flybeemon. Something had been different with Gizamon. What had happened that had prevented him from feeling the fatigue that the other Digimon seemed so terribly afflicted by?

Blake and Meggy began walking towards the forest with Gizamon and Rabbitmon by their sides. Casey ran after Blake, who turned at the sound of his feet. Prairiemon was close at his side.

"Blake, I just wanted to ask," Casey said, thinking. "What did you do to make Gizamon Digivolve?"

"Well, I've been thinking about Digivolving, too," Blake said. "But my thoughts were about the first time, when our little guys Digivolved to stop Flybeemon. Gizamon Digivolving kind of helped my thoughts - slightly."

"What did you come up with?"

"I think our Digimon Digivolve when we're placed in danger," Blake explained. "They all Digivolved when they had no other way to stop Flybeemon. Then Gizamon Digivolved when the Flybeemon attacked again. Not only that, but I was specifically thinking that Gizamon didn't Digivolve until I'd been hit. It's gotta be that."

"That's a pretty good theory," Casey agreed.

"I have a question too, because I was thinking about this," Blake said.

"Where did you get the time to think about all of this?" Meggy asked, throwing her hands up in frustration. "This just happened a minute ago!"

"I think a lot," Blake replied simply.

"What was your question?" Casey asked, slightly acknowledging the splash that Rainey had just made. The others were laughing.

"Did you feed Prairiemon?" Blake questioned him.

"Prairiemon and the others were going to get food in the morning," Casey explained, trying to figure out the meaning of Blake's question. "Why? Did you feed Gizamon?"

"I gave him some of my share," Blake replied. "And I'd bet that's why he was the one who Digivolved and not the others. His energy was refilled. The others didn't have any energy."

"That makes so much sense," Casey agreed. "I can't believe we didn't consider that." He mentally slapped himself for being stupid.

"To be fair, none of us could have anticipated another attack, much less from Flybeemon and friends," Blake said, smiling at his terminology.

"That's true," Casey said.

"It's getting dark," Meggy interjected in an attempt to get the search going.

"Yeah," Blake said. "Go get Prairiemon some food, Casey." Blake turned away, but looked back and added, "Just in case."

"I will," Casey reassured him. "I just hope we don't need it."

Casey walked back to the center of the island, discreetly picking up Becca's pack. The others were all already enjoying the lake's cool waters. They were splashing each other and laughing, paying Casey absolutely no attention. Casey pulled out an apple and handed it to Prairiemon.

"I'm sure Cameron won't spazz if he's missing just one apple," Casey muttered as he handed the apple to Prairiemon.

Prairiemon ate the apple greedily, feeling energy coursing through him more and more with each juicy bite.

When Prairiemon shoved the apple's core into his mouth and began crunching nary a minute after Casey had handed the fruit to him, Casey smiled and patted Prairiemon on the head fondly. "I hope that hits the spot."

Prairiemon gulped down the core. "Yeah," he replied, smiling.

"Do you want to play in the lake?" Casey asked Prairiemon.

Prairiemon's cheerful demeanor disintegrated immediately. He looked down at the dirt, avoiding Casey's now concerned gaze.

"What's wrong Prairiemon?" Casey asked him, kneeling down to his height and lifting Prairimon's head up by gently pushing up on Prairiemon's chin with his finger. Prairiemon looked sadly into Casey's eyes.

Casey thought he understood. "Is it that you can't swim?" Casey asked, smiling. "I'll teach you."

"No, it's not that," Prairiemon replied quietly.

"Then what?"

"I'm-" Prairiemon felt terrible. He was letting his partner down by not wanting to swim.

"What is it?"

"I'm afraid," Prairiemon whispered.

"Of what?" Casey inquired.

"Of swimming," Prairiemon replied, fighting back the tears of sadness at disappointing his partner. "Of water."

"You're afraid of water?" Casey clarified.

"Yes."

"But it's okay," Casey stood, motioning to the lake. It was peaceful, save for the ripples caused by Rainey, Cameron, Adam, Becca, Lopmon, and Otamamon splashing around. Kunemon was watching from the shore, not being able to swim because of his caterpillar body. DemiDevimon was swooping just above the water, playfully pulling on his partner's hair and then flapping out of his reach.

"I know," Prairiemon said. "It's just scary."

Casey looked at him for a moment, disappointed that he wasn't going to get to play with Prairiemon in the lake. Then he smiled. "You know what?" Casey said, rubbing Prairiemon's head and gently pulling on his soft, furred ears. "It's alright. You can watch with Kunemon."

Prairiemon allowed a small smile. Casey didn't hate him for not playing in the lake. It would turn out all right. "Okay," he agreed.

They went over to Kunemon's side, Prairiemon plopping heavily beside him, and carefully making sure that his feet didn't touch the water. Casey pulled off his shirt, dropping it at Prairiemon's side. He yelled out and cannon-balled into the water.

-

They had been playing for about an hour, and darkness had thoroughly consumed the area. Everyone was soaked and DemiDevimon was exhausted. The kids decided it was time to get out, dry off, and put their clothes on. Becca had been swimming in her bathing suit, and the guys had just removed their shirts, shoes, and socks.

Rainey and Cameron layed themselves out on the dirt, panting from the huge water war they'd been having. Lopmon and DemiDevimon were layed out beside them. Adam was laying by Kunemon.

Otamamon was a tadpole Digimon, and therefore a part of the aquatic classification. Otamamon was an expert swimmer, and took Becca and her pack of supplies over to another shore so she could venture into the forest to change without anyone else around.

Casey was still floating in the lake, treading water and causing only slight ripples. Silence had once more regained control over the lake area. Casey began making his way over to the shore to rejoin Prairiemon.

Then it happened.

There was an explosion of water all around Casey, obscuring him from everyone's view. Adam, Cameron, Rainey, and their partners shot up. Prairiemon cried out and leapt to his feet. The water settled back to the lake, but Casey had disappeared from sight.

"Casey!" they yelled in dismay.

Casey found himself wrapped in red skin. It squeezed around him just enough to keep him securely in its grasp.

Finding that struggling had only the effect of wasting his already meager amount of air, Casey followed the skin. It was the end of a long tail, a blue-green tail that was long and thin and snakelike. He followed it as it stretched down into the darkness, merging into darkness itself. He could see the silhouette curve around and, looking back at him from the other end, was a pair of shining red eyes.

Casey stifled a yelp of terror, focusing rather stupidly on his now burning lungs instead. He needed air. The attack had been sudden and unexpected, and Casey had had no time to breathe. He had seen the green snake body fly up from the inside of the water explosion and had been drawing breath as he was suddenly pulled under.

Bubbles erupted from the monster's mouth as a roar shook the very lake itself. But Casey was beyond the roar, beyond the terror it would otherwise have filled him with. He was out of air. Already his vision blurred. Surely there was nothing he could do to save himself.

And then he was rocketing up towards the surface, vaguely aware that the water stung his still opened eyes. He burst through the surface, still in the creature's clutches, and gasped for the most wonderful air he'd ever breathed in his life.

"Casey!" Prairiemon called from the shore, a mix of happiness at seeing Casey still alive, and dismay at seeing Casey still wrapped in the clutches of the sea serpent.

"Help!" Casey coughed out. There was another upheaval of water and the creature's head rose up from the lake. It roared, and everyone on shore jerked involuntarily.

Its underside was white, with the rest of it being sea green. Its head was covered with some kind of armor, a golden armor that dully glimmered in the light of the stars that were just now venturing into the sky. It had intense blue eyes that glared coldly at its prey and his friends.

"Seadramon!" Prairiemon cried in fear. The Seadramon roared, seemingly in acknowledgement.

This was indeed Seadramon. It had been disrupted from its slumber by an earlier battle, and had then bided grumpily at the bottom of the lake. The last straw for it was when these strange monstrosities invaded his lake. They had invaded his territory, and that was completely unacceptable. He was determined to destroy them for it.

And he would start with the helpless creature it already held in its grasp.

"Aaaaaahhhhhh!" Casey screamed as Seadramon's tail began squeezing all the newly gained oxygen back out of Casey's body.

"Oh no!" DemiDevimon cried.

"Big brother!" Rainey wailed.

"Suffocating!" Casey choked out painfully. "Do . . . something!" Every breath was a struggle, and words were near impossible. In seconds he would no longer be able to speak.

"Casey!" Prairiemon whispered helplessly. What could he do? He had an electric attack, but that would hurt Casey as well as Seadramon. If he could get to Casey, he might be able to claw Seadramon's tail enough that Seadramon would ease up, but to do that he would need to go out in the water. Fear stopped him. What should he do?

"Prairiemon!" Casey gasped. "You . . . can . . . do it!"

"Casey!" Prairiemon called back vainly. "I can't! The water!"

"There's nothing . . . to be . . . scared of!" Casey said, as a light began to brighten and shine through the twists of Seadramon's tail.

_He's right_, Prairiemon thought. _This is more important than my stupid fear of water_.

"Casey! I'm coming!" Prairiemon leaped, shooting through the air and rocketing straight for Casey. The light shining from what Casey realized was his Digivice grew, enveloping the area, until Prairiemon's voice could be heard clearly.

"Prairiemon! Digivolve to . . . "

" . . . Leomon!"

The light faded, and in Prairiemon's place, an enormous humanoid shaped lion hurtled at Casey.

Leomon slammed into Seadramon's tail with great force, in itself causing his grip to weaken. Then Leomon's powerful hands gripped Seadramon's tail and pried him off of Casey. He snatched Casey and launched himself off of Seadramon's tail and back to shore.

Leomon placed Casey on the shore and leapt at Seadramon once more. Leomon was muscle-bound, with large biceps, chiseled abs, and a beast load of strength to go with them. He had a flowing mane of golden hair that outlined his humanoid-lion merger of a face. He wore black pants, held up by a thick black belt. His tail stuck out the back and a sword was sheathed on his left side.

Seadramon shot a ball of flickering blue energy at Leomon. "Beast Sword!" Leomon cried, his hand shooting to his sword hilt. In one fluid motion, the sword went from sheathed to outstretched on the other side of him. Having used the sword to stop Seadramon's attack, he continued through the now useless streams of flickering blue.

Seadramon hissed, lurching back slightly from fear, as Leomon sheathed his sword and, still flying through the air. He brought his hands, balled into fists, to his side, and suddenly his right fist burst into bright orange flame.

"Fist of the Beast King!" Leomon screamed as loud as he could, drawing back and slugging Seadramon across its armored face with his fiery hand. Seadramon was knocked sideways, being pushed by the flame, which had a shape resembling the face and mane of a lion.

Seadramon was pushed nearly to the lake's surface, when the fire exploded, clouding Seadramon from view in a fiery inferno. Leomon himself had landed from his mighty leap on the opposite shore.

The kids heard Seadramon screaming in pain and agony, and when the smoke cleared, he was gone. They could see a few small pieces of sea green floating up, but it quickly dissolved.

"He was digitized," Cameron whispered in awe.

"Yeah!" Casey leapt into the air triumphantly. "We won!" He looked across the lake at his partner, expecting a similar reaction, but instead Leomon began to glow, and then shrunk back to Prairiemon.

"Prairiemon!" Casey called. He sprinted across the small land bridge and then skirted the side of the lake. He stopped beside Prairiemon and dropped to his knees, pulling Prairiemon into a massive hug. "Way to go, buddy," he whispered.

Prairiemon only chuckled weakly.

"Hey, you know what?" Casey asked.

Prairiemon shifted to look him in the eyes. "What?"

"I'd bet water's not as bad as you thought it was, is it?"

Prairiemon smiled and closed his eyes momentarily. He opened them and beamed even larger. "No, it's not. It's not bad at all."


	4. Rabbitmon Gets Firepower

Author's Note: Oh my gosh! That chapter took me so long! Sorry everybody!

-

-

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**CHAPTER FOUR**

**Rabbitmon Gets Firepower**

After Leomon's fight with Seadramon, Blake and Meggy returned. Becca had changed and come out of the forest to see Leomon beat Seadramon, and Blake and Meggy had come from the forest with firewood in order to see it as well. Everyone congradulated and thanked Prairiemon and Casey. Afterwards, everyone helped to start the fire and they settled down for a peaceful night of sleeping in shifts.

After a restful sleep, the children were awoken by a metallic rattling. They shot up, in fear of yet another attack, and saw a tram car pulling onto the island.

"What the?" Blake muttered.

"Where'd that come from?" Casey asked.

"Look," Cameron said, standing up and pointing. The tram car had come from the direction of the forest, and there were purple-pink neon streaks of light resembling power lines going off into the direction that the tram car had come from.

"Maybe if we follow the light, we'll find where that came from," Cameron said.

The cart moved slowly, coming to a slow, laborious stop on the island.

"Wonder if something's inside," Rainey thought aloud.

"Let's go see," Lopmon suggested.

"Yeah!" Rainey agreed, zig-zagging off towards the door of the car with Lopmon.

"Hey, be careful!" Casey called, his brotherly instincts kicking in. He ran after him, with Prairiemon at his heels.

"I think we should find out where this thing came from," Blake said.

"Why?" Becca asked.

"Yeah, what's wrong with a day of relaxing?" Adam asked, dreading another day of nothing but walking. And the occasional run for your life.

"Mouse, you know I love to relax," Blake said, using Adam's nickname.

Adam nodded. Blake did indeed enjoy the time he spent doing more or less nothing. "Yeah."

"But this is different," Blake said. "We're in this strange world, and we need to find a way home. This car may lead to the exit."

"And we can go home," Meggy reiterated quietly, looking down into space and dreaming of home. Home seemed so far away.

They all joined in with their own silent, longing thoughts of home. Warm sheets, a breakfast of sizzling bacon and perfectly salted eggs, and a family to sheild them from all the dangers that seemed to have come at them en masse in the past twenty four hours.

"Let's go then," Cameron said, snapping everyone out of their stupor. At that moment, they heard Rainey complaining loudly about not finding anything.

"What did you expect to find?" Casey asked, rolling his eyes slightly so his brother couldn't see.

"Something different than nothing!" Rainey replied.

"We're going to go find where this thing came from," Blake announced.

"Have we packed everything up?" Adam asked.

"What 'everything' are you talking about?" Blake asked sarcastically.

"Just trying to make sure we didn't leave anything," Adam replied defensively.

"No," Blake grunted with a bit of anger. He was cranky. He didn't like sleeping on the floor when he went over to a friend's house, much less sleeping on the dirt in a strange world.

"That's my bag," Becca said, reaching for it. Adam had strapped it to his back.

"It's okay," Adam replied, pulling on the pack to make it more comfortable. "I'll take it."

"You sure?"

"Yeah," he replied. Adam felt a little small and insignificant, and this would help him stand out in the group and do something important. He would be the keeper of food.

"Anyways," Blake butted in angrily, restraining himself. He realized that patience was a virtue, but it certainly wasn't one of abundance in Blake.

"Which way did it come from?" Casey asked.

"We saw some energy lines running off in that direction," Cameron explained.

"At least, that's what we think they were," DemiDevimon supplied, hoping it helped. He personally felt a little left behind by his partner. Cameron was very smart, and DemiDevimon was feeling a little stressed to keep up. But it wasn't too hard to simplify what Cameron said. He just prayed it didn't get harder.

"Then let's go!" Blake said, ending conversation and marching off with Gizamon before any more conversation could ensue. The others followed.

-

"Oh my gosh, it's so hot!" Meggy complained for what had to be the hundredth time. Everyone else grumbled acknowledgement and agreement.

Meggy would have felt childish and weak about complaining so much, except that everyone else had been complaining just as much as she. Even the Digimon were moaning.

The children had gone in the direction that the car had come from and were now walking through a desert that was so hot that literally everything was waving and shimmering in the heat being reflected from the dust.

"What's that?" Cameron said. It was he who'd complained the least, being reserved instead to thought and observation. DemiDevimon had more than made up for it, being inclined to cold or warm environments, but nothing that got terribly hot.

Everyone looked where Cameron's finger was pointing. There, in the distance, were large black shapes in no particular order, zig-zagging through the desert wasteland. They rippled and waved with the rising heat.

"Towers," Rabbitmon said in a weak, parched voice.

"They look like some things from our world," Meggy explained, pulling Rabbitmon off of the ground and into her arms. Maybe if she was being carried, she would cool off a little.

"Yeah," Becca agreed. She'd been carrying Otamamon the whole time in the desert. Since Otamamon was very much a water-loving Digimon, she couldn't stand the heat. Becca was helping her every way she could.

The kids travelled to the base of what turned out to be the large wire-frame towers that connected power lines. Strangely, though, there were no lines connecting the black towers.

"That's wierd," Cameron muttered.

"What's wierd," DemiDevimon asked.

"They're supposed to have thick black wires running from one to the other," Cameron explained, trying to give DemiDevimon a mental picture of what he knew so well from the real world.

DemiDevimon wasn't stupid, but he wasn't the brightest crayon in the box either. He stumbled over Cameron's descriptions, not being able to grasp things beyond what he'd seen for himself. Cameron's attempts at letting DemiDevimon see the lines mentally proved as difficult as describing cold to someone who'd never felt it.

"I understand," Rabbitmon said encouragingly to Cameron.

"Maybe you can help DemiDevimon understand sometime."

"Looks like it just keeps going!" Blake called from a ways off. He was motioning to the power lines.

"Guess they keep going," Meggy said, smiling slightly. Rabbitmon laughed quietly in her arms.

They all trudged along after Blake, who was running off of pure impatience.

They followed the lines for a while, which kept getting more and more spread out, until they could see a canyon.

"Wonder where that goes," Becca thought out loud.

"One way to find out," Casey said.

"Do we have to?" Prairiemon sighed tiredly from beside him.

Blake was already at the edge of the canyon, looking down into the depths. They saw him and Gizamon jump joyfully into the air. The two turned and shouted at the others to hurry.

"We're coming!" Adam called back grumpily.

Meggy was bringing up the rear at this point, and therefore was the last to behold the valley in the canyon.

"Oh, wow!" Meggy cried out in surprise.

They were overlooking a small village, it seemed. Small houses made out of dried mud that looked like simple cylinders of only a few feet in height, with curving roofs to top it off. They resembled acorns sticking out of the ground without the stems on top. The houses were in circles five circles, all closing in on what seemed to be a well in the middle of the village. There were little pink things all around the well.

"Hey, let's go see if they have some water," Meggy suggested.

"Yeah!" Blake agreed loudly. He plowed off down a narrow dirt road that led down into the village. Gizamon and the others followed, groaning for their aching feet.

The pink creatures didn't notice as they approached, and only noticed as they entered the outer circle of waist-high huts. The creatures turned and bounced towards them.

They were pink little balls, with blue flower petals coming from their heads, with yellow designs on them, and a red stem coming from the top. The creatures had lots of little tiny feet-like things and big green eyes that were currently downcast and brimming with tears.

"They're Yokomon," Lopmon said.

Meggy noticed the sadness that was in their eyes. "What's wrong?" she asked them.

"Oh, it's just horrible," one of the Yokomon said in a high-pitched voice. "Since our village is in this desert, we depend on a small underground river. Recently, the river dried up. Now we don't know how we're going to get any water."

"Oh my goodness!" Rabbitmon and Meggy said in unison.

"That's terrible!" Becca exclaimed.

"Where does the river come from?" Cameron asked, already trying to fix the problem in his head.

"The river originates on that mountain," the same Yokomon, seemingly the leader, pointed with the red stem to a mountain in the distance. The mountain was small and shaped kind of like a wedding cake, with a small layers piled on top of larger ones, going about seven or eight high.

"At the top, there's the river's mouth. There's a guard Digimon that protects the mouth, but something must have happened."

"Has the guard Digimon ever had anything happen to him before?" Cameron asked.

"Never," Yokomon answered.

"Maybe we should go up there and check it out," Blake suggested.

"More walking," Rainey complained in a whisper that Blake couldn't hear.

Suddenly, there was a flash from the mountain top.

"What was that?" Adam cried.

"Maybe it's the guardian," Cameron replied cooly.

"The guardian never shows himself in the village," Yokomon explained.

"First for everything," Casey muttered, feeling a sense of dread sweep into him.

There was another flash of light, and an orange, pulsing glow remained on the summit. Then the glow descended the mountain, and the children could see a stream of dust behind it.

"That's gotta be the guardian!" Meggy whispered. Everyone's eyes were trained on the glow, approaching at a terrifying speed. Now, an orange figure could be seen in the midst of the glow.

Adam could feel his legs begin to shake from fear of the worst that could happen. Whoever this was, Adam was sure that this being was the reason for the drying up of the well. That meant that he was probably a pretty strong guy.

"Here he comes," Casey breathed.

They could now see the figure pretty well. He was humanoid, but made up of seemingly nothing but orange and red flame. Big blue eyes could be seen on his face. The sound of slightly maniacal laughter reached the ears of the children.

"Is he . . . okay?" DemiDevimon questioned at the sound of the laugh.

They held their breath until the creature stopped, overlooking the kids, village, and villagers from the top of the cliff.

He opened his mouth wide, letting loose a long cackle.

"Who are you?" Gizamon demanded.

"I'm Meramon!" he cried. Then he added in a maniacal scream, "It burns!"

"Burns?" Cameron asked.

"Well he is on fire," Lopmon muttered.

"Fireball attack!" Meramon yelled, a ball of flames forming in his right hand. He launched the ball towards the kids, who dodged in different directions. The fireball caused a huge explosion, showing a crater that it left behind.

"Whoa!" Casey yelled.

"What was that for?" Otamamon demanded angrily.

"Burning! Burning!" Meramon screamed.

"He's not making any sense," Rabbitmon said.

"Fireball attack!" Another crater was formed, but his aim was a little worse this time.

"Cut that out!" Blake yelled.

"Aaaaagh! Burning!" Meramon screamed again.

"What do you mean?" Becca called concernedly.

"Huah!" Meramon called, and suddenly his size began increasing. He grew another foot or two, and then he looked at the kids with a new, horrible glint in his eye. His bright blue that they had first seen had suddenly been replaced by a dull, glazed blue.

"Look out!" Cameron yelled, noticing the balls of fire forming in both of Meramon's hands.

Meramon cried out as he went into a frenzy, slinging fireballs left and right.

"Meggy!" Rabbitmon called, seeing a fireball heading right towards her.

"Aah!" she yelled. The ball landed a few feet in front of her, and she was engulfed in smoke. She cried out as small, sharp pieces of rock from the blast cut her. She lost balance and fell on her butt.

"Meggy, are you okay?" Rabbitmon said, patting a cut on her arm gingerly.

"I'll be fine."

"Good," Rabbitmon sighed with relief. She turned to look at Meramon. "You sure picked the wrong village to attack today!"

"Heh heh," Meramon chuckled cockily. His face contorted suddenly, and once more he cried out, "It burns!"

"I'm gonna make you pay for even thinking about hurting my friend!" Rabbitmon growled.

Meggy looked down at her Digivice, which had suddenly started beeping and shining. "She's Digivolving!"

Rabbitmon was bathed in light, and she cried, "Rabbitmon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Lynxmon!"

"Wow," Meggy breathed. "Look at her!"

Lynxmon was a large, lion-like, tiger-like, panther-like big cat, wreathed fully in red and yellow flames. She had intense emerald eyes and long, sharp teeth. It had purple tips on its pointed ears and purple tipped whiskers.

"Incredible!" Blake exclaimed.

"Go Lynxmon!" Rainey yelled triumphantly.

Lynxmon let out a roar that made even Meggy's legs tremble. Lynxmon shot off, scaling the vertical wall with a speed and ease that made the kid's jaws drop.

"She didn't slow down at all!" Cameron said.

Meramon was caught pretty off guard, but he did manage to get a haywire Fireball attack sent off in the completely wrong direction. Lynxmon shot over the cliff edge with a speed and angry glare that made Meramon take a few steps back.

"Wild Nail Rush!" Lynxmon cried, slashing Meramon across the chest with orange, fiery claws.

"Aaah!" Meramon screamed in pain. Then, face once more contorting in what was now distinguishable agony, he screamed, "It burns! Aaaah!"

Lynxmon began dashing around the screaming, spasming Meramon. As Lynxmon passed around Meramon's backside, she saw a bit of black sticking out of his lower back. _Wierd_, Lynxmon thought as she passed. _Maybe _. . .

"Fireball!" Meramon called suddenly. The fireball hit dead on, knocking Lynxmon to the edge of the cliff. She stuck her sharp, white claws into the cliff, dangling desperately from the cliff face.

"Lynxmon, no!" Meggy wailed, desperately trying to think of something to do.

"Ha ha ha ha ha!" Meramon cackled, swinging his arms around wildly and screaming in both pain and glee at once. He began to pulsate, growing larger and then shrinking again, and then larger and then shrinking, over and over.

"He's going crazy," Casey whispered.

"Lynxmon!" Meggy screamed again, fighting back the tears.

"Meggy!" Lynxmon grunted painfully. "Meggy, don't worry! It'll be okay!"

"Lynxmon," Meggy whispered. Then she realized that crying wouldn't help anything. "Go, Lynxmon!" she yelled out.

_Right!_ Lynxmon strained her muscles, surging power through her limbs and shooting back over the cliff edge, even faster than before. Meramon lost his balance just from seeing Lynxmon's incredible speed and strength.

"Thermal Mane!" Lynxmon cried from behind Meramon.

Meramon's head snapped around. "No!"

The fire that made up Lynxmon's body surged, and her face was engulfed in brilliant flames. Only her green eyes could be seen. Then the fire warped down into a ball hovering in front of Lynxmon's mouth. She roared and the fire streaked towards Meramon. All this happened in a second.

The fire punched into Meramon's back, right where the black was showing. Meramon's scream of agony was piercing, and Meggy felt as if her soul itself was shuddering.

The fire stream ended, and Lynxmon saw the black burst into little particles, that rose a bit in the air and then dissappeared.

Meramon began to shrink, and in a few seconds, he was back to his original size. He was on his knees, his hands in the dirt, panting. Lynxmon padded up to his side, looking at him with concern.

Meggy had run up the path along the cliff and now ran up to Lynxmon's side. "Are you okay, Lynxmon?"

"Yes. I'm a little worried about Meramon."

Meggy walked around Lynxmon and tenatively up to Meramon. She hesitantly touched his shoulder and asked, "Are you all right?"

"Thank you," Meramon laboriously gasped.

"Um," Meggy started, not having expected such an answer. "You're welcome?"

"What happened?" Lynxmon asked. "What was that thing in your back?"

"I don't know," Meramon pushed himself up into a sitting position. "I was just guarding the spring like I always do and something hit me in the back. It caused a lot of pain, and I just went crazy."

-

They were around the well. The children and the Yokomon were standing around him, and he was sitting on the edge of the well.

"I tried to stop myself," Meramon explained.

"I'd bet that black thing was why you couldn't," Rabbitmon said, having DeDigivolved.

"Let's just be thankful that it's over now," Meggy said.

"It's not over," Cameron said, halting everyone's agreement with Meggy.

"What do you mean?" DemiDevimon asked.

"It's over when the problem's been solved. The Yokomon still don't have water. Problem unsolved."

"Actually," Meramon interjected, "the water of the spring is very strong and unending. My fire evaporated the water that came out, but since I've been gone, the water's probably started flowing again. The well should fill up in only a few minutes.

As if on cue, they all heard the trickle of water resonating from the well.

"You know what, Rabbitmon?" Meggy said, looking fondly at her pink-armored Digimon. "You did it."

Rabbitmon smiled happily. "Thanks Meggy."

Meggy pulled Rabbitmon into a huge hug as the water trickled into the Yokomon's well.


	5. Vilemon's Nightmare Shocker

**CHAPTER FOUR**

**Vilemon's Nightmare Shocker**

The desert's heat had died down shortly after the Yokomon village dissappeared from view. Relieved, the children trudged on with a small amount of consolidation.

Soon, the ground began to get uneven and a bit rocky. "Guess we're finally leaving the desert," Cameron commented.

"Finally," Becca agreed tiredly. Her feet were aching.

"I wonder if we're going to find another village," Rainey thought aloud.

"We might," Lopmon said.

"I just hope the next village we find doesn't have its own angry guardian," Meggy said. "We've seemed to attract trouble the entire time we've been here. Maybe Meramon was the last of it."

Thinking back, Meggy reflected on the battle they had in the canyon where the Yokomon village was located. Meramon had caused the Yokomon well to dry up and then attacked the village. Meggy smiled, remembering that that had ended up with Rabbitmon Digivolving into the fiery Lynxmon. Good had come of the fight.

She sighed. Despite Rabbitmon's Digivolution, as well as Prairiemon's and Gizamon's before hers, the fact was that these attacks were dangerous and frightening, and Meggy wouldn't be disappointed if Meramon was the last enemy they'd have to face.

"Maybe we'll find a way home from here," Casey said. That was the whole point of all the walking they were doing, and he wanted to make sure no one forgot that.

"Maybe," Cameron agreed absentmindedly. The talk about Meramon had brought his mind to something peculiar: the black object. Something had gotten lodged into Meramon's back, causing his rampage against the Yokomon. What was it? Why was it? Where did it come from? And _who _did it come from.

He was interrupted from his thoughts as a new sight came to view. They found themselves on the top of a steep hill, and at the bottom of the hill was a large steel structure. It looked like big metal boxes that were thrown together, and some connecting walkways could be seen at the top, up pretty high.

"What's that?" DemiDevimon wondered.

"Only one way to find out," Blake said, starting off carefully down the steep hill.

"Guess we should follow him?" Prairiemon asked unsurely.

"Yeah, guess we should," Casey grumbled, starting off after him.

They all took a few careful minutes to get down the hill. The hill seemed to consist of nothing but apt-to-slide rocks. They continued on towards the structure, walking onto the steel floor that covered the ground here.

"Do you think it's safe to go inside?" Adam asked unsurely.

"It's fine," Blake drawled, marching carelessly inside.

"He's confident," Meggy chuckled nervously.

"A little too much, I'd say," Casey muttered.

They let out a collective sigh and trudged after their seemingly fearless leader.

After walking down a long, dark hallway, the kids and Digimon came to a large square room. The ceiling was so high up that it couldn't be seen through the accumulated darkness.

"Wow, what's that?" Becca asked as she surveyed the room.

There was a large conveyor belt going through the room, from one side to the other. There were also large steel boxes that the belt ran through along the way and there were mechanical arms hanging down from the ceiling.

"Guess it's an assembly plant," Adam muttered.

Just then, the conveyor belt roared to life. The kids looked around to find out who had started it, and saw Blake standing by a large switch.

"Blake," Casey sighed disdainfully.

"Look," he called obliviously. "It works!"

"You're a master mind," Meggy retorted sarcastically.

They saw that as the conveyor belt went along, more things appeared on the belt. As it went through the first big metallic box, it came out with a robotic upper body in a humanoid form. As it continued, the body got arms, a head, and some attaching wires. Then it continued on along a dark tunnel, continuing on the conveyor belt to an unknown destination.

"Turn it off, Blake," Becca said, scratching her arm nervously. "You might be messing with something important."

"Let's find out where it goes," Rainey said, running off with Lopmon down yet another dark hallway.

"Rainey, be careful!" Casey yelled, running after Rainey and Lopmon with Prairiemon at his side.

"Come on, guys," Adam said, running off after them. Everyone else followed.

Down the seemingly endless hallway, Rainey and Lopmon ran laughing and fooling around. Casey and Prairiemon were following worriedly after, and the others were all behind. Cameron noticed another tunnel going off to the left and stopped.

DemiDevimon, sitting on Cameron's shoulder, asked, "What are you doing, Cameron?"

Blake noticed and he and Gizamon stopped. "What's up, Cameron?"

"I just thought I'd like to see the rest of this structure," Cameron said. Blake understood that he wanted to go down the other passage, and nodded. "Thanks," Cameron said, running off to the left.

"Be careful," Blake yelled after him before running off after the others.

-

"Where'd Cameron go?" Adam asked when they'd arrived at another large, almost identical room and Adam'd had time to take mental roll.

"He wanted to go explore," Blake said nonchalantly.

"And you _let him_?" Casey cried. "That could be really dangerous!"

"It'll be fine," Blake said, masking the doubt that had suddenly crept into his mind with Casey's last comment.

"Let's hope," Casey muttered angrily.

"Guys, what's this?" Becca called. She and Meggy had wandered off when the group first arrived in this room, and now they were with their Digimon by a large pile of rubble.

"What?" Adam called back. Rainey ran to join the girls.

"It looks like somebody's trapped in the rubble," Meggy explained.

"What?" Casey and Blake exclaimed, sprinting with Adam to join the others at the rubble.

-

"Cameron, why couldn't we just stay with the others?" DemiDevimon whined.

"DemiDevimon, it's hard to explain," Cameron said, turning to the right at the three way stop he'd come to.

"Are you trying to get away?"

Cameron remained silent for a moment. He knew DemiDevimon wasn't the brightest crayon in the box, so he needed to be careful not to shoot way over his partner's head. "In a way, yes," he decided on.

"Why do you want to get away?"

"I want to find knowledge," Cameron tried. "I'm a really smart guy. I want to learn what I can."

"So you can get smarter," DemiDevimon finished. Or so he thought.

"No. Not necessarily."

DemiDevimon gave him a confused look - something that had much of its meaning wasted simply because DemiDevimon was on Cameron's shoulder and Cameron couldn't get a good look at him.

"See, I'm with Casey in this group. Casey's keeping his eye on the prize - getting back home. I just think that acquiring as much information about the Digital World as I can is the best way to help us all get back home."

"I still don't understand why we couldn't stay with the others to do it," DemiDevimon muttered.

"The others don't have as much of a flare for knowledge as I do," Cameron explained, trying to focus on where he was. He'd reached a long stairwell that looked like it would take him up quite a few stories and leave him a bit out of breath. "They're more adventurous than me. I also need to concentrate, which I can't do with them all screwing around."

"I think I understand," DemiDevimon said unsurely. Cameron accepted this as a genuine answer and focused on the long walk up the steps. DemiDevimon retracted himself from focusing on his surroundings in order to try and put together exactly what Cameron meant. But to no avail.

-

There was indeed a being trapped underneath the rubble. The only thing visible were two large metallic boots, each about the size of Rainey, and metal legs going into the rubble.

The kids and their Digimon were situated around the large feet, and now a single cry ran out from Blake's mouth: "Pull!"

They all grunted and pulled as hard as they could on the feet, and after a few fooling seconds, the being began to slowly, inch by inch, slide out of the rubble pile.

Soon, all were sitting on the floor, panting and sweating, and the being was lying on top of the rubble.

"What is it?" Becca asked.

"Looks like some kind of robot," Otamamon answered.

"More like an android," Adam said.

"I think it's a Digimon," Kunemon piped in.

"Is it, uh, like offline or something?" Meggy said, looking concernedly at the still form.

"Let's try to wake him up!" Rainey said, giving the android a firm kick in the leg.

"Don't kick it!" Casey said sternly, while Rainey massaged his now hurting foot.

"You okay?" Lopmon asked, concerned.

"Yeah," Rainey laughed. No one had noticed the sudden red that filled the eyesockets on the being.

"Look!" Otamamon yelled unecessarily. They had all noticed the creature rise up into a sitting position, his long metal-plated legs still stretched out stiffly in front of him.

He was like a very, very tall humanoid, which was easy to see even while he was sitting down. His entire body was plated with silver, aluminum-looking metal. The lower half of his face was showing, and it looked humanoid, but the upper half was coverd by a metal mask, with only his red, glowing eyes showing.

"Uh," Blake said, trying to think of something to say. "Hello?"

The humanoid's head turned jerkily to look at Blake.

"Does he talk?" Gizamon wondered aloud. Just then, the being got to his feet.

"What's your name?" Becca asked in a friendly tone.

"I am called Andromon," he rattled out in a grating voice.

"It is a Digimon," Kunemon whispered, more to himself than anyone else.

"How did you get to be buried under all that stuff?" Prairiemon asked.

Andromon turned to look at him, but said nothing.

"Hello?" Prairiemon said, waving his claw at Andromon. "You in there?"

Suddenly, Andromon began, for lack of a better term, spazzing out. His head began to jerk and tremble, and his hands were clenching and unclenching over and over again.

"What's happening?" Casey cried.

"I didn't do anything!" Prairiemon cried innocently.

"Is he having a seizure?" Meggy asked. She was unsettled by this, remembering two times when her sister suffered from seizures. She took a step towards Andromon, with Rabbitmon tensed at her side. "Do you need help?"

Andromon roared and lunged at Meggy. She cried out, and Rabbitmon used her powerful legs to push both herself and Meggy out of the way. Andromon's heavy metal arm slammed into the floor with devastating force. It would have killed Meggy for sure, had Rabbitmon not saved her.

"What was that for?" Meggy yelled angrily, getting shakily to her feet. Rabbitmon was between her and Andromon now, and the other Digimon were between their partners and the threat as well.

Andromon released a frightening growl. "If it's a fight you want, it's a fight you'll get!" Blake yelled threateningly, and the Digimon all leaped at Andromon.

-

DemiDevimon sighed. He and Cameron had finally stopped walking, only to have Cameron kneel down and begin examining some ancient runes painted on the walls. DemiDevimon was bored out of his mind, but he wanted to support his partner, and apparently that meant that he needed to sit there nearby and be bored.

_I think I might be able to decipher this one! _Cameron thought excitedly, making a mental note about one of the strange runes and the different locations they appeared.

DemiDevimon and Cameron jerked in surprise as they both heard a crash.

"What was that?" Cameron asked, getting to his feet.

"I don't know," DemiDevimon said.

Another crash was heard. "It came from that hallway!" Cameron said, running down the hallway the second crash had echoed through. DemiDevimon took to flight, pulling ahead of Cameron as both neared a light at the end of the tunnel.

Suddenly, the two found themselves on a metal walkway, leading from the part of the structure they'd just been in to another. They were in the open air, and several stories above the ground. Cameron looked down and his stomach flipped. But, putting aside his fear, he looked again to see Monochromon, Lynxmon, and Leomon standing together in front of his six friends, and an android slowly advancing on them in the narrow walkway they were currently confined to.

"Guys!" Cameron called, getting immediate looks. The android looked up too, Cameron noted. He gulped.

"Gatling Attack!" Andromon grated, his fist rocketing towards Cameron and his four or five story high walkway.

"Cameron!" DemiDevimon screamed, racing for Cameron.

The fist collided close to Cameron, causing the walkway to collapse. Cameron slid helplessly off and began falling with a terrifying speed to the ground. "DemiDevimon!" Cameron cried despairingly, feeling his Digivice vibrate and seeing a brilliant light.

"DemiDevimon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Vilemon!"

With a large, sharp-toothed mouth, squinting red eyes, a body covered with black hair and bright red hair sticking up from its head, and four wings, Vilemon rocketed to Cameron and snatched him out of the air.

"You Digivolved!" Cameron panted, recovering from his fear.

"Yeah!" Vilemon smiled. He set Cameron down on a walkway about two stories above the ground and flew off.

"Thermal Mane!"

"Volcanic Strike!"

"Fist of the Beast King!"

Three fiery attacks hurtled towards Andromon, but his armor withstood the attacks. His power was too great.

But Vilemon was coming up behind him, seeing what looked like a black gear sticking out of his back and associating it with what had caused Meramon to attack. Maybe if he attacked the gear, Andromon would become nicer like Meramon had.

"Nightmare Shocker!" Vilemon cried, as a yellow-red bolt of electricity appeared above his head, between his two top wings, and streaked towards Andromon's lower back, where the gear was lodged.

Andromon jerked in pain as the gear was torn apart by the electricity surging through it. It burst into pieces and dissappeared, and Andromon slumped to the ground.

Vilemon retrieved Cameron and brought him to the ground before reverting back to DemiDevimon, and the three other Digivolved Digimon DeDigivolved as well.

"Are you okay, Cameron?" Rainey asked.  
"We're fine," Cameron said, pulling DemiDevimon into his arms.

"How 'bout you?" Blake asked the prostrate Andromon.

Andromon shuttered to his feet, seemingly the same Digimon save for one important difference: His eyes were now green.

"Thank you," Andromon said in a voice that was now clear and no longer garbled.

"What happened to you?" DemiDevimon asked him.

"That gear," Andromon said, grunting at the rememberance of the pain it had caused. "It lodged in my back and made me want to hurt you."

"Why'd it do that?" Rainey asked.

"I don't understand it," Andromon sighed.

"Well, how'd you get under pile of rubble?" Blake asked.

"When the gear first lodged into my back, I went berserk and . . . well, I wasn't really myself, so I'm not sure, but basically something was knocked down on top of me and I fell to the floor."

"Ouch," Lopmon said.

"What brought you to this structure?" Andromon asked.

"We're looking for a way back home," Casey answered, explaining how they'd come to be in the Digital World. Andromon nodded.

"What's this structure for anyways?" Cameron asked.

"Well," Andromon smiled, "that's a bit tougher. You might not understand this, or maybe you don't want to understand it, but this structure has no purpose."

"But we saw the conveyor belts," Cameron said. "They wouldn't exist if they didn't do anything."

"It's hard to understand, I guess," Andromon smiled, "but this structure really has no purpose. It just _is_."

Cameron didn't accept this answer, but he didn't press the issue any further.

"Well, if this structure's so useless, I guess we'd better be on our way," Blake said.

"I can point you in the right direction," Andromon supplied. They all agreed, and Andromon began to lead them somewhere.

"Thanks for saving me," Cameron said to DemiDevimon as he walked with his partner perched on his shoulder, as usual.

"It was the least I could do," DemiDevimon joked.

After only a couple of minutes of walking, Andromon stopped in front of what looked like the beginnings of a sewer tunnel.

"In there?" Becca asked incredulously.

"This will lead you closer to the mountain at the middle of the island," Andromon explained, "and maybe you can climb that and see something that will be helpful."

"Thanks," Blake said sincerely.

"It is all I can do," Andromon said. "I'm sorry I couldn't do more."

"It's okay," Casey said. "That's a good idea."

"Be careful," Andromon said.

"We will," Rainey said, running off down the passage wtih Lopmon.

"Rainey!" Casey cried out, running after him with Prairiemon.

"Thanks again," Blake said, before running down the passage, everyone else following him, trying to catch up to Casey and Rainey.

Andromon stood there with a look of fondness on his face, watching as they became smaller and smaller and then dissappeared in the darkness.

-

-

Author's Note: I'm sorry! This took me forever to write! I have an excuse though! I had to hook up my new computer, and first I had to get all my files off the old one. My disc drive was broken, so I e-mailed all my files to my uncle and wasn't writing so I wouldn't have any more to send than what I already had. So there's the story. The new computer's been up for a week and it works great.


	6. Tortomon In Toy Town

**CHAPTER SIX**

**Tortomon In Toy Town**

There was very little light in the sewage tunnel, and what little there was made everything seem a dark greenish tint.

"Oh, this place is nasty!" Becca groaned.

"We've been walking for a while now; we should be coming out soon," Blake reassured her.

"That's right," Otamamon said.

"I wish Andromon had never suggested this," Becca grumbled.

After finding a strange structure in the middle of no where, the kids had been attacked by a powerful Digimon, Andromon. DemiDevimon had Digivolved into Vilemon and used his electric attack to destroy the strange black gear that was embedded in Andromon's back and causing him to attack. Then Andromon had shown them to the sewers, telling them that it would take them closer to the mountain at the center of the island, where they could climb to the summit and see what to do from there.

"Ugh," Meggy said. "What's that smell?"

"I don't know," Rainey said, while pinching his nose shut to try and block it out.

It was as if they'd walked into a wall of stink. "It smells like a septic tank," Casey groaned.

"In all fairness, we are in a sewer," Cameron rationalized.

"Hasn't smelled before though," DemiDevimon pointed out.

"You don't think someone's . . . flushing?" Becca said, fighting back her panic.

"Maybe that's it," Gizamon said, pointing his webbed claw down the pipe. They could see shapes moving in the darkness and could now hear a shuffling and splashing sound.

"What is that?" Otamamon asked in fear.

The shapes became more clear. They looked like green blobs of goo, like slugs, and had two big, silly looking eyes perched upon eyestalks. They had big open mouths with big red tongues lolling out and they emitted a horrible stench.

"Aah!" Becca screamed.

"There are so many!" Casey noted.

"If they want a fight -" Blake began.

"They're Numemon," DemiDevimon cut in. "They're really slimy, but they aren't very harmful."

The army of Numemon, as DemiDevimon had called them, rushed past. Breathing a sigh of relief, the kids continued on.

"That was wierd," Casey stated.

"Just a litte," Blake agreed sarcastically.

"I hope they weren't running from something," Becca whispered.

They continued down the sewer with no more strange events, and finally, after what seemed like an eternity, they came through into bright sunlight.

"Finally!" Becca sighed.

"Look at that," Gizamon said, pointing. He had noticed a town only about a minutes walk from where they currently stood. "Maybe someone in there knows how to get you guys home?"

"Let's go then," Casey said.

"Wait a minute," Becca stopped them. She pointed. "Look. Vending machines!"

"Hey!" everyone cried out in excitement.

"Let's get something!" Adam said.

"Refreshment!" Becca said eagerly as she walked up to the vending machine. She pulled a dollar from her pocket and put it in the machine. It went in and she began pressing buttons to make her selection, but nothing happened.

"Hey!" she cried angrily. "It took my money!"

"Why don't we call the service guys of nowhere to come and get your dollar back," Blake joked, recieving a hard punch in the arm.

"I want something to drink!" Becca yelled. "Stupid machine!" She gave it a fierce kick and it started rattling.

"Looks like you got it," Blake said.

Becca let out a scream as green Numemon began pouring from the machine. "Eww, not again!"

Twenty or thirty poured out all in a great green mass and headed down the sewers as Becca recovered from the fright. Her dollar popped back out and she put it promptly into her pocket. She began storming off towards the town.

"Wait Becca!" everyone cried, going after her.

"When I get into town, someone's gonna get it for putting that Digimon-infected machine out there!" Becca yelled, breaking into a sprint that was fueled by anger.

"Wait up!" Everyone yelled.

"Aw, let her go," Meggy sighed tiredly. Becca and Otamamon were zooming off to town. "We'll just walk to town like normal people and catch up with her when she gets there."

"Alright," Blake agreed with his own tired sigh.

-

"Where is everyone?" Becca asked Otamamon as they walked down the empty, dusty streets. The town was like a miniature big city, with quaint little stores in the midst of large sky scrapers. The only difference, aside from the dirt road and lack of sidewalks, was that nothing was open and no one was around.

"That's wierd."

"Yeah," Otamamon agreed.

"Maybe it's a ghost town," Becca shivered, edging closer to Otamamon.

-

"I can't believe she'd just run off and then dissappear in a city with no people," Blake muttered. Finally, after nearly an entire day of adventure, Blake was running out of gas.

"Maybe if we split up?" Casey suggested.

"Good idea," Blake said. "Since there are six of us, make sure everyone's with someone who's Digimon has Digivolved already."

"Rainey can come with me," Casey said, going off down the street to the left.

"I'll go with Cameron," Adam suggested. They went to the right.

"Then you're with me," Blake said to Meggy, and they began walking down the center road.

"It's so wierd that she's nowhere to be found," Blake muttered again.

"I hope we find her soon," Meggy said worriedly, "and I hope she doesn't get into any trouble."

-

"Otamamon, maybe it wasn't such a good idea to run off like that . . ."

They'd been walking for a considerable amount of time now and had found neither resident nor friend. "I'm starting to get worried," Becca said.

"Maybe if we turn around?" Otamamon suggested.

Just then, they heard a buzzing sound.

"What's that?" Otamamon asked, looking around for potential threats.

Then Rainey ran past, followed by . . . a toy helicopter.

"Rainey!" Becca cried in relief. Lopmon flew past as well, following the boy and the toy. "Let's go, Otamamon!" Becca said.

They chased after Rainey and Lopmon, calling both of their names, but neither looked back. Rainey and Lopmon were laughing, but neither sounded like they really had any emotion.

"What happened to them?" Becca panted, stopping and watching Rainey dissappear around a corner.

"They seemed wierd," Otamamon began.

"Yeah, it's like they were drugged or something," Becca said. Then they heard another dull laugh.

Turning around, they saw Meggy and Rabbimon chasing after a small toy dump truck. Then there was a high pitched siren, which belonged to a toy police car that sped past, followed closely by Cameron and DemiDevimon.

"What's happened to everyone?" Becca asked. "And what's with the toys?"

"We have to follow them," Otamamon said, running off with Becca right behind. Cameron and DemiDevimon were both laughing soullessly, and chasing the toy that seemed to have gotten a life of its own.

"Cameron, don't you recognize me?" Becca wailed. "Stop! Please!"

"It doesn't seem to work on any of them," Otamamon said, catching a glimpse of another kid-Digimon team down at the end of a street they passed.

Stopping and letting Cameron and DemiDevimon get away as well, Becca sat down in the dirt. "Something's happened to them."

"How can we help if they won't let us?" Otamamon asked.

"I don't know," Becca sighed sadly.

Just then, Blake and Gizamon appeared, running after a line of quickly marching army men toys.

"It's Blake!" Becca exclaimed, shooting to her feet and running in between Blake and the toys. She put her hands against his shoulders and pushed, but he just kept walking and pushing against her. His eyes seemed dull, unfocused, and they were turned towards her, but she could tell he wasn't actually looking at her.

"Stop, Blake, please!"

"No," Blake replied dully. He grabbed her arms and, with tremendous and unnatural strength, shoved her aside. She fell to the dirt and Blake and Gizamon ran off after the toys again. Otamamon rushed to her side to see if she was hurt.

"I'm all right," Becca said, fighting back the tears. "I can't believe he'd do that. And it felt like he was super strong. Something bad's happened to them. To all of them."

-

"Ow!" Adam cried, landing painfully on his butt. He had been dropped from a few feet too much up, and had landed on the bottom of a treasure chest, it seemed. Actually, more like a toy chest.

"Kunemon, are you okay?" he asked his partner, who'd been tossed in with him.

"I'm fine, but -" Kunemon motioned to the corner behind Adam.

Turning, Adam saw Casey sitting in the corner. He and Prairiemon were just standing there, staring at them but not really staring at them.

"Casey, are you all right?"

But Casey did not reply, nor acknowledge his existence at all. Neither did Prairiemon.

"What's wrong?" Kunemon asked for any who'd answer.

"It's like all the emotion's been taken away from them," Adam thought aloud. And then he noticed it: A sinking feeling, a depression, settling on him. The happiness and feeling was being sucked from him, and Casey and Prairiemon were the result of what was now happening to him.

Adam thought frantically about some way to combat this feeling, or loss thereof, but couldn't. In fact, his thoughts were flowing through a mental molasses. The chest must have some power over thoughts and feelings, some way to suck them out.

"You feel it, don't you, Kunemon?"

"Yes."

"What can we do?"

"I don't know."

"I have an idea." Adam walked to Casey. He put his hands on Casey's shoulders, and looked up into Casey's eyes with all the intensity he could muster. "Casey, come on. You know me. You see me. Get your brain going."  
A minute of silence, of recieving a blank stare, and Adam turned to look at Kunemon. He shook his head, and then set the backpack he carried on the dark floor. He turned back to Casey, looked him in the eyes with another intense burst, put his hands on his shoulders again, and screamed at him, "Come on Casey! Come on!"

He thought he saw an almost inperceptible flicker of Casey's eyes, and was renewed with a new determination. "Come on man," he said, feeling his eyes water a little with all the raw emotion he could create that he was releasing. "I need you to help me now Casey. You have to help me. Don't let me lose it. Don't let me let it go!"

And Casey blinked.

"Adam?"

"Casey!"

But by the time he'd said Casey's name, Casey had reverted back to a very, very slightly less blank stare.

"I got through to him, Kunemon!" Adam said determinedly. "Now I've just gotta go again. We're going to get him back!"

-

Becca was now crying. Otamamon had tried to comfort her in any way possible, but it was just no use. Her friends were in some hypnotized state, and she was all alone save for her partner.

"But what can we do?" she wailed. "They won't even talk! They just laugh in that robotic way and chase those stupid toys!"

"I'm sure you'll think of something," Otamamon said, patting Becca's shoulder.

Becca wiped her tears and stood. She'd thought of something.

"What's up?" Otamamon asked.

"The toys!" Becca said. "If we destroy the toys, then maybe our friends will be released from the spell they have over them!"

"That's a great idea!" Otamamon exclaimed.

"Let's go!"

They ran all throughout the identical dirt roads, but saw no one.

"That's so wierd," Becca panted. "Just a little while ago we couldn't avoid our friends if we'd wanted to. Now they're nowhere to be found."

"Do you think something happened?"

Becca was just about to reply when Meggy came around the corner. She was chasing a toy airplane and laughing in the same, soulless way as the others. Rabbitmon was right by her side.

"Let's go, Otamamon!" Becca exclaimed.

"Right!" Otamamon leaped towards the airplane. "Stun Bubble!" The transparent bubble flew towards the plane, colliding dead center and turning the plane to plastic splinters.

"Yes! Go, Otamamon!"

The effect the plane's destruction had was immediate, albeit less than Becca'd hoped for. Meggy and Rabbitmon stepped, and began looking around for the plane, which they didn't seem to understand no longer existed.

"Meggy?" Becca began tenatively.

There was a loud booming, like footsteps, and the windows of nearby shops rattled. "Otamamon!" Becca cried. Otamamon ran to her partner and they dodged out of the road and into an alley. "Meggy! Rabbitmon! Run!"

Meggy and Rabbitmon didn't react, but continued to look around. "Oh no," Becca whispered. She was about to run to Meggy and Rabbitmon and attempt to push her out of the way, but the source of what was now clearly heavy footsteps appeared at the end of the street.

It was two stories high, with yellow fur and a white-furred belly. And it was a teddy bear. Albeit, one who had squinted, glowing red eyes and a black gear sticking out of its large stomach.

"What's that?" Becca asked fearfully.

"I can't remember its name," Otamamon whispered, "but I remember hearing about it, and it's supposed to be pretty tough."

Despite the irony of the scene, as the teddy bear advanced on the unmoving forms of Meggy and Rabbitmon in a menacing way, Becca did get chills looking into the soulless eyes.

Standing very close to Meggy and Rabbitmon, the bear announced in a grating voice, "Hearts Attack!"

Two big pink hearts shot out from the bear's belly and enveloped Meggy and Rabbitmon. They were lifted from the ground, and came back into consciousness as they were.

"Rabbitmon!" Meggy cried. But Rabbitmon looked as though she'd fallen asleep with her eyes closed. Meggy sat back and in moments looked the same way.

"What happened?" Becca cried. "It's like they just . . . stopped working."

Otamamon was speechless, and Becca was having trouble formulating words. "We should follow them," Becca finally decided as the bear walked off. She and Otamamon followed as descreetly as possible.

-

The bear had walked for a few minutes, directing the two hearts with their two captives inside to stay afloat just in front of him. Becca and Otamamon watched as he dissappeared into a building and then snuck in afterwards.

They saw the bear lower Meggy and Rabbitmon in their hearts into a big toy chest. The chest was pink and there was a heart shape on the top lid. The chest had gold edges.

The hearts popped and Meggy and Rabbitmon came to life as soon as the hearts popped. They screamed as they fell a short distance. The bear closed the lid on the chest and walked out, grumbling to itself. Becca had noticed that the chest was not quiet. There were many screams coming from inside.

She ran up to the chest, which dwarfed her. She probably could have fit through the keyhole. Taking in a deep breath, Becca yelled, "Hey you guys! I'm here!"

"Becca!" Blake's muffled voice came from inside.

"I'll get you out!"

"Don't worry about us yet!" Blake replied.

"Yeah, just watch out for Monzaemon!" Gizamon added.

"Who?" Becca asked.

"That's the name of the bear!" Otamamon exclaimed, having had her memory jolted.

They heard the door jingle, and Becca turned to see Monzaemon looking angrily at her.

"Hearts Attack!"

"Run Becca!" Meggy cried. But Becca didn't need any jump starts. She dodged behind the chest with Otamamon and the hearts popped on the floor.

"Let's go!" Becca said, running as fast as possible towards Monzaemon.

"Hearts Attack!"

Barely escaping the attack, Becca and Otamamon dodged past Monzaemon, who didn't move extremely fast, and out the open door.

Monzaemon's bellow of rage echoed down the street as Becca raced to get away. As she neared a four way stop, a horde of toys appeared in front of her.

"What now?" Becca cried.

"Now?" Otamamon said grimly. "Now we only have one option, and we have to fight."

Facing Monzaemon, they braced themselves.

"Hearts Attack!"

The hearts flew towards them, but they dodged aside and the hearts popped in front of the toys.

"Alright Becca!" Otamamon cried, leaping from the sudden luminescence of Becca's Digivice to the oncoming Monzaemon. "Here I go!

"Otamamon Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Tortomon!"

A huge yellow-gold turtle had appeared, with a sharp beak, intense green eyes, and a shell covered in huge spikes.

"Wow!" Becca's eyes were alight with excitement.

"Now the odds are a little in our favor!" Tortomon yelled triumphantly. She headbutted Monzaemon in the stomach, just missing the black gear.

"Get that gear!" Becca rooted for Tortomon.

"I'm on it!"

"You will fall!" Monzaemon grated. Tortomon pushed against her and Monzaemon stumbled back slightly.

"Strong Carapace!" Tortomon roared, her spiked shell glowing with energy. Energy spikes hurtled from the shell towards Monzaemon, engulfing it in smoke caused by exploding energy spikes.

Becca turned at a sound like many things had been dropped to the ground, and saw the toys all lying lifelessly on the ground.

The smoke cleared, and Monzaemon was standing there - without a gear.

"You're okay!" Becca cheered.

Tortomon DeDigivolved to Otamamon. Monzaemon stepped towards them. "I'm so sorry," he said. "I couldn't stop myself."

"Can you please help my friends now?" Becca asked.

"Of course."

"Thank you, Otamamon," Becca said, carrying her in her arms.

"I had to help you," Otamamon replied tiredly. "You were in danger. I couldn't let anything happen to my best friend."

Becca was a little shocked by this statement, but she recovered soon. Her eyes were watering, and she fought the tears. "Oh, Otamamon," she began, but stopped. Otamamon had fallen asleep.

_It's okay Otamamon_, she thought. _It's okay now. And you know what? I love you too._

_-_

_-_

Author's Note: Yesss! Got this written and uploaded a day after chapter five! I'm so excited! Anyways, I just updated so fast as consolation for my long absence. So long, till next chapter!


	7. Kuwagamon's Scissor Claw

**CHAPTER SEVEN**

**Kuwagamon's Scissor Claw**

After leaving the toy town, the seven kids and their Digimon continued on throughout the rest of that day, camping at the foot of the great mountain. Monzaemon had called the mountain Infinity Mountain.

Stretching and yawning, Adam stumbled to his feet as quietly as he could. Everyone else was asleep, including Kunemon. He knew just how inevitable it would be for him to get up and start doing anything without waking anyone, but he wasn't going to continue to feign sleep any more.

_No wonder it was so cold_, he thought to himself, seeing a very thin, already half-melted layer of snow on the ground. _I haven't seen snow for two days,_ he thought to himself. He smiled as this led him to his first meeting of his partner, who was, at the time, DemiMeramon.

Walking disceetly down the small slope to the bank of a small, quiet river, he began washing his face.

"Good morning," Kunemon's voice came from behind him.

"Morning, Kunemon," Adam said cheefully, wiping off the water with his shirt.

"Did you sleep well?"

"Yes. Did you?"

"Of course. Adequate rest is necessary to be fully functional during the day."

Adam sighed, shooting his partner a smile. Kunemon was great, and he was happy to have him around, but he was way too wierd. "You're one odd cookie," Adam chuckled as he walked to a tree stump a few yards from the river bank. Taking off the backpack, he began pulling out some of its contents, preparing to help make breakfast.

"Need any help?" Becca said, sidling up next to him.

"Sure," Adam accepted with a smile.

"Otamamon, go wash your face," Becca directed, sounding like a worried and loving mother.

Adam laughed internally. Becca sure was a character. They'd been on friendly terms for the years he'd known her, but they'd never really hit it off. So far, her stay in the Digital World seemed to consist of her complaining about _something_. And then she'd surprised everyone at the lake by providing a backpack of food, and again in town by standing up to Monzaemon and saving everyone else. He'd have to figure her out.

"Why don't me and Otamamon go and gather some fruit?" Becca asked.

Adam nodded. They would need to live off the land as much as possible in order to have food for an emergency.

"Alright, we'll be back in," she paused, thinking, "maybe thirty minutes."

"Okay," Adam nodded. "Just be careful."

"We will," Otamamon assured him, walking away with her partner.

"Do you wish me to aid you in the process of preparing breakfast?" Kunemon asked.

"You need to learn how to talk, Kunemon," Adam laughed.

"I am a fluent speaker, and therefore do not understand what you are implying."

Adam just shook his head and headed to the river to wash a few apples in the perfectly clear waters of the river.

-

A half an hour later, everyone had been awakened. Meggy, Rainey, Casey, and their partners were helping Adam get everything ready, while Blake was in the forest looking for a big stone to cook the fruit on. Cameron had muttered something about wanting to wake up with a walk and had headed off on his own.

"I think this is going to be really good," Meggy commented, wiping the shiny red apple she'd been washing with the clean towel from Becca's backpack.

"We haven't cooked yet," Casey said, "so this'll be a new experience."

"We can use Gizamon or Lopmon here to start the fire," Rainey said.

"We need some firewood," Adam sighed, mentally slapping himself for not thinking of that sooner.

Just then, they heard Blake grunting, and saw him stumbling along with a large, flat stone in his hands. He struggled over to the four food preparers and let the heavy stone drop loudly onto the ground. He bent over, hands on knees, panting.

"You okay, Blake?" Gizamon asked, concerned.

"Yeah, man, you don't want to strain yourself too bad," Casey said.

"I'll be . . . fine," Blake panted. "I just . . . need to . . . rest a while." He dropped to the ground on his butt, wincing as he realized with the landing that he'd done so way too fast.

"And you can rest all you want," Adam said cheerily, "right after you go get us a good load of firewood."

"Ugh," Blake cried out tiredly and exasperatedly, falling on his back. Adam hauled him up and pushed him off in the direction he'd come from.

"It's not so bad, Blake," they heard his loyal partner comforting him as he dissappeared from view.

"That was fun," Adam smiled, before returning to work.

-

"You don't want to miss breakfast," DemiDevimon said, fluttering off of Cameron's shoulder and going on a few feet ahead of him. He wanted to stretch his wings.

"I was thinking maybe I could just get some fruit out here," Cameron muttered absentmindedly.

"Is something wrong?" DemiDevimon asked, flying backwards so he could look Cameron in the eyes.

"It's just," Cameron began, struggling with the words. "It's just, I'm into learning more about the Digital World. The others, they're into just charging ahead. I'm friends with them, but the longer I spend in the DigiWorld, the more I feel like I'm part of something different than they are."

"You think you're meant to go on a different path?"

"I'm starting to think that way," Cameron sighed, stopping to look hungrily at a plump red-orange fruit hanging from a tree branch, but denying himself food for the time being. "I met you because it was destined to be that way. I came here with the others because it was destined to be that way. But maybe we weren't meant to stay that way."

"Huh?"

"Maybe we weren't meant to stay that way, as in, stay as a group of seven. Maybe we were meant to pursue our own paths."

DemiDevimon looked troubled. "You want to leave the others?"

"I just don't agree with how they're going about this." He stopped, clenching his fists in anger, but catching himself and stopping the gesture. He shook his head to clear the sudden, unexpected rage that had dwelled up inside him. "They just don't understand. You don't either, but you're learing. They want to plow on, ignorant to the world. I just don't know if I'm up for that. I don't know if that's how it should be."

DemiDevimon looked despairingly at his partner, but simply continued his flight wordlessly. Cameron walked behind, deep in angry thoughts.

-

It had taken quite a while to get the big stone hot enough to actually cook the fruit, but now they were sizzling satisfyingly, and Meggy prodded them every once in a while to make sure they didn't burn or get stuck to the slab of rock.

"Mmm, that smells good," Becca smiled, coming up behind her.

"Sure does," Rabbitmon and Otamamon agreed in unison.

"Thanks," Meggy said, appreciating the compliment. "I think this is going to be a nice change from just normal fruit."

"Yep," Becca agreed.

"You gathered some more fruit, right, Becca?" Casey asked her, having walked up behind them.

"Yeah," Becca replied, turning to face him, "but when I saw that you had things covered here, I just put it in the backpack."

"Okay, thanks."

"Is it just me, or is Cameron acting a little depressed lately?" Blake asked Adam, Kunemon, and Gizamon a ways off from where the girls were cooking. Blake was laying tiredly on the ground, covered in shards of bark.

"He certainly isn't hanging around much."

"You don't think he'd leave?" Blake asked, sitting up.

"I don't think he'd leave without telling us," Adam said, feeling the doubt creep into him now that Blake had said something.

"Great, as long as he tells us first," Blake spat out sarcastically, throwing his hands up and falling to the ground again.

"He has DemiDevimon with him," Adam muttered. "Now that he's Digivolved, I'm not worried about him. And that's what's most important right? Everyone getting home safe?"

"Yeah," Blake sighed. "But he thinks a lot different than we do. I'm starting to think that's not such a good thing. I'm afraid it's going to lead to him getting split up with us."

"But that wouldn't be the worst that could happen," Gizamon interjected helpfully.

"No, not until we all found a way home and he was left here with no idea." Blake rolled over and tried to put it out of his mind. Gizamon curled up by his partner, and Adam and Kunemon sat in silent thought.

"Boys, come on!" Becca called. She, Meggy, Casey, Rainey, and their partners were all over around the slab with the cooked fruit on it.

"Alright," Adam called back, grunting as he stood up. Blake sat up groggily and accepted Adam's offer to help him up. The four walked over to the others.

"Where's Cameron?" Becca asked concernedly when they'd come over.

Blake nodded his head tiredly. "He went walking," Adam said quietly.

Becca looked at him, wondering about this, but figured out that they'd been talking about it and had had enough. "Make sure you get something to eat," she said, smiling warmly. "There's plenty to go around."

"Thanks," Adam said, returning the warm smile. Blake sulked for a second, but then shot Becca a glance that was intended to thank her, but didn't work so well, and grabbed some warm fruit.

Becca sighed.

-

"So, DemiDevimon," Cameron began, breaking the uneasy silence.

"Yes?"

"What's your hypothesis on the black gears we've been seeing embedded in the Digimon?"

"What's a 'hypothesis'?"

Cameron laughed at his ignorant but loveable partner. "It's like your guess. What do you think about them?"

"I don't know," DemiDevimon admitted weakly. "I never really thought about it."

"Are you kidding?"

"No," DemiDevimon said sincerely.

"DemiDevimon," Cameron sighed. "Didn't you ever wonder what the connection between Meramon, Andromon, and Monzaemon was, why they'd all been hit at different times, and why the gears made them attack us?"

"No," DemiDevimon said slowly.

"Or who might have sent them?" Cameron added more seriously.

"Do you think it's a Digimon?"

"I'm not sure about that one, but I do know that those things popped up everywhere we went yesterday. I don't see it as a coincidence."

"So someone's sending the gears to make the Digimon bad and attack us?"

"Yeah," Cameron nodded, thankful he was getting through, "but it's all backfired on whoever's been sending out the gears."

"Why do you say that?"

"Because every time we've been attacked, we've gotten stronger. The first time, Rabbitmon Digivolved to Lynxmon, then you Digivolved to Vilemon, then Otamamon Digivolved to Tortomon."

"So you're saying that every time this guy's sent out a gear, it was meant to beat us-"  
"And it almost did yesterday with Monzaemon and those toys," Cameron interrupted grimly.

"-and instead of beating us, more of us Digimon have Digivolved and become stronger."

"That's right," Cameron nodded. "But I don't think the attacks are going to stop."

"But who's left that can Digivolve?" DemiDevimon asked. "All the Digimon we've fought have been getting stronger and stronger. What happens when there's no one else who can Digivolve?"

"I'm not sure, DemiDevimon," Cameron answered. "But all we have left is Kunemon, Adam's partner, and Lopmon, Rainey's partner."

"Well I hope we can find whoever or whatever's causing these gears to hurt Digimon and stop him before it gets too much for us."

"Me too," Cameron nodded forebodingly. "Me too."

-

The smoke from the smoldering ashes of what had been their fire trailed lazily up into the gray sky.

"We ready to go?" Blake asked, his energy and adventuring spirit having been rejuvinized.

"Let's do this," Adam sighed, looking up at the mountain and dreading the steep climb.

"Alright!" Blake began walking, but it soon became clear that he had no intention of going up the mountain.

"Where are we going?" Meggy asked him as trees reared up before them.

"We don't really need to go up the mountain," Blake explained, turning to face the group. "That'll just waste today, and we're going to end up going this way anyways, so I thought we'd just cut out the time and head this way."

"Cameron's not back yet," Becca said worriedly.

"He'll find us if he wants to," Blake said a little bitterly.

"So what says this way's the way to go?" Casey asked Blake in a challenging voice. "Why not that direction?" he pointed to another path on the other side of the clearing.

"Because my instinct says this is the way to go," Blake explained patiently.

"Oh, your instinct," Casey drawled, strolling to stand in front of Blake. "Your masterful instinct. Yeah, let's go over where your instinct's gotten us so far, shall we? First, your instinct led us to a cliff edge with nowhere to hide from Flybeemon. Then to a lake where we were not only coverless, but surrounded on all sides by water, where we were first attacked by Flybeemon, and then by Seadramon. Then your instinct took us into the desert, where we nearly died of heat-stroke and were then attacked by Meramon. After that, your instinct took us into a big maze of a building where we fought Andromon, who only lost to us because Cameron came from just the right angle. Then you took Andromon's advice instead of seeing if there was a better way and we all almost got our emotions taken away forever, if it hadn't been for Becca and Otamamon."

Blake glared angrily at him as the others looked on, speechless. Then Blake exploded.

"Well if you have such a _problem _with me, then why didn't you say something before?" Blake yelled, sounding more angry than questioning.

"Because you've never given us a chance!" Casey screamed.

"Well maybe I thought you all agreed with me because no one had said anything!"

"Well maybe you should have been paying a little more attention!"

"What's going on?" Becca asked despairingly, looking on the verge of tears. The two boys didn't hear her.

"I've got to do something about this," Adam muttered.

"You're such a pompous blowhard!" Casey screamed, his voice cracking.

"You're one to talk!"

_That's it, _Adam thought. _I can't take this._

"You're such an idiot!"

"And I'm _so sure_ you're _not_ an idiot!"

-

"Wow, it's getting kind of late," Cameron noted, throwing the core of a piece of fruit he'd been eating away.

"We should get back to the others."

Cameron stopped. Should they really go back to the others? He didn't really know if that was where destiny wanted him. What if there was more? What if the others were holding him back, or at least steering him wrong? What if _not _going back is exactly what he needed to do?

But then he shook his head. If he was going to go off on his own, he didn't think that now was the best time. They'd only been here for two days, and they would still be interdependent for a little longer. _No, _he thought, _we should get back._

"Yeah, DemiDevimon," Cameron sighed. "It's time to go back."

-

"Ah!" Adam cried out, feeling his foothold suddenly stop holding him.

"Adam!" Kunemon cried. Adam caught a protruding rock and halted his unexpected slip.

Grunting, Adam hauled himself back onto the narrow trail he'd been travelling on for a few minutes. "Are you alright?" Kunemon asked, feeling worthless for the help he couldn't give due to the fact that he lacked hands.

"I'm fine," Adam breathed, shaking off the leap his heart rate had taken. He chanced a look down and whistled. "Wow, we've come a long way."

Kunemon nodded in agreement. They were already about a hundred feet in the air, and continuing up the steep, slippery slope of Infinity Mountain.

After the fight between Blake and Casey had broken out, Adam had decided that trekking up to the summit as per the original plans would be the best and most conflict-resolving choice.

Now, slightly regretting his choice, Adam continued up the slope. Kunemon walked easily behind, his three pairs of spike-like legs and three pairs of stickers carrying him up the slope nearly as easily as if he were walking on a flat surface.

"If we can get to the summit without any more stops, we'll be able to get down before noon," Adam panted. "Since the days are so much longer here than they are in the Real World, we'll even have time to walk a while after we get down."

"If you're not too tired," Kunemon said.

"I think I'll be all right," he said.

"I believe you made the correct choice," Kunemon said a moment later.

"About what?" Adam asked, playing dumb.

"About travelling to the summit."

"Oh really?" Adam said, smiling to himself. "What makes you say that?"

"The conflict that Blake and Casey got into is not progressive. This is. You are doing this in the name of progress, which is honorable and right."

"Thanks, Kunemon," Adam beamed.

-

"There they are!" DemiDevimon exclaimed happily, still flying out in front of Cameron a few feet.

"What's going on?" Cameron asked, noticing the conflict that was currently going on.

"What?" DemiDevimon asked unknowingly.

"Let's get over there," Cameron said, breaking into a run.

As he ran up to them, he could hear Casey and Blake shouting.

"You dolt! That's your brilliant idea?" Casey cried, throwing up his hands in exasperation.

"I'd like to hear any idea, brilliant or not, that you've got, other than doing the opposite of what I say," Blake growled angrily.

"Guys! Guys!" Cameron yelled, running in between them. "Stop!"

"Cameron!" Becca cried. "Thank goodness you're back!"

"Yeah, because, as you can see, the collective intelligence of the group dropped drastically," Meggy said dryly.

"Okay, everybody chill out," Cameron said, almost feeling the tension recede. "What's going on?"

"I was planning on going on, but then Casey stopped me and let me know in the most polite way possible that I'm a completely incapable leader," Blake sneered.

"And Blake let me know very kindly that I'm an idiot for criticizing him," Casey shot back.

"Stop fighting!" Rainey shouted, feeling tears that he'd been holding back for so long run down his cheeks.

Casey's anger left him immediately. His face filled with compassion and he felt his own tears threaten to appear. "I'm sorry. I didn't meen to upset you. I didn't mean to upset anyone," he said, kneeling down in front of his brother and looking into his watery eyes.

"Actually," Meggy said bluntly, holding back the sharp anger in her voice, "you meant to hurt Blake. So yes, you did mean to hurt someone."

"Meggy," Becca said.

"No!" she yelled. "If this is going to be a problem -"

"It's not a problem," Blake interrupted her, putting a calming hand on her shoulder.

She glared, but then her anger deflated. "Okay," she said, releasing the rest of the built up pressure with a sigh.

"Finally," Becca whispered, thankful for the quiet.

"Um, guys," Cameron broke the quietness. "Where'd Adam go?"

They all started at this, looking around frantically, save Casey and Lopmon, who were comforting the silently weeping Rainey.

"Did you see anything?" Cameron asked all the Digimon, who'd obviously not been a part of the argument.

"I noticed him walk off," Prairiemon said, "but I was trying to pay attention to what was going on in case Casey needed me for something."

"Great," Cameron said, his head dropping. "Did you see which direction he went?"

Prairiemon raised his right claw, pointing up to Infinity Mountain, towering over them. "Oh no," Cameron sighed.

-

"Look!" Adam panted happily. "It's the top!"

"We have arrived."

"We made it," Adam corrected.

"Yes. Truly."

Sighing but smiling, he walked off the sloped dirt and onto level ground.

Before him was the flat, rough circle of Infinity Mountain's summit. There was what looked like an ancient Roman temple in the center of the summit, and, grazing in front of that temple, was a beautiful horse.

It was large, with a gleaming white coat. It had two long ears and its face was covered with a red armored facemask. The mask had a slit along the eyeline that was a beautiful sky blue, but its true eyes could not be seen behind the visor. The mask had a long, lethal looking red horn sticking out of it. Its mane and tail were both flowing gold and it had large black wings.

"Wow," Adam breathed, his breath completely taken by the beauty of the horse before him.

Its head jerked slightly at the sudden sound of the boy's voice. It raised its head and stared serenely at Adam and Kunemon. Snorting, it took a step towards them.

"Hey there," Adam said unsurely, Kunemon slithering in front of him to protect him from a potential attack.

The white horse simply stared at Adam. Then it flicked its tail and returned to grazing.

"Do you hear that?" Adam asked Kunemon as a strange buzzing met his ears.

"Is the Digimon emitting this strange sound?" Kunemon questioned.

"No," Adam said, looking into the sky in horror. "It's _that!_"

A black gear was hurtling from the air, rocketing with unbelievable speed towards Infinity Mountain's summit, moving seemingly with a mind of its own.

"A black gear," Kunemon stated the obvious.

"I know!" Adam looked at the serene winged horse. "Look out!"

The horse's head jerked in surprise, but more at Adam's outburst than at the pending danger. It was completely unaware, even as the gear sped straight for it.

"No!" Adam screamed despairingly. The horse screamed in pain as the gear embedded itself mercilessly into its back. Rearing, the horse began leaping around and flapping its wings, losing control of itself, its body reacting to the pain without any conscious thought.

"This is unfortunate," Kunemon said.

"That's the understatement of the century," Adam muttered as the blue visor changed to a glowing blood red and the winged horse turned to look at Adam and Kunemon, stomping angrily. Adam gulped.

-

"I wonder how long he's been gone," Becca said worriedly.

"I'm sure he's fine, Becca," Blake comforted her.

"I know," she said, shaking her head. "I just worry, that's all."

"I don't know if there's anything he could get himself into up there anyways," Casey said nochalantly.

"Infinity Mountain's a pretty mysterious place," Otamamon said.

"Yeah," Prairiemon agreed. "Anything's possible."

Casey rolled his eyes. "Whatever. I just don't think that'll be a problem."

"You never know," Blake said.

"I hope he gets back soon," Becca whispered quietly.

-

"Hey, we didn't come here to pick a fight," Adam said, backing up. The winged horse was advancing, and right now its horn looked pretty nasty. Adam was very aware of the fact that he couldn't back up much farther without running out of ground.

Letting out a snort, it flapped its mighty wings and shot into the air, missing Adam's head by only feet.

"Electro Thread!" Kunemon cried, emitting a string of electricity that shocked the horse but didn't seem to do any great effect.

"Why are you attacking us?" Adam cried. "Can't you fight it?"

Neighing, the horse cried out, "I am Unimon, and you have come into my domain. You will be destroyed. Horn Blaster!"

A ball of blue-green energy appeared in Unimon's mouth, which hurtled towards Adam and Kunemon. Adam grabbed Kunemon and, in the same movement, leaped out of the way. The ball hit the ground and caused an incredible explosion.

"Kunemon!" Adam yelled. "Do something!"

"Poison Thread!" A purple colored thread streamed towards Unimon. Unimon attempted to dodge, but the thread hit the left side of its mask, going off in an upward diagonal and leaving a thin burn.

"How dare you!" Unimon bellowed. "Aerial Gallop!" His wings began to beat faster and faster, until he finally gave one final mighty flap and sent a gale-force wind screaming towards Adam and Kunemon.

"Oh no!" Adam cried. "We can't stop it!"

Suddenly, what seemed like a wall of orange flames came between the attack and its targets.

"What?" Adam said in disbelief.

"A wall of flame!" Kunemon exclaimed.

They heard the attack impact, and the wall bent inward slightly, but held. "Good job, Lynxmon!" they heard Meggy cry.

"Meggy!" Adam exclaimed as she ran to them. Lynxmon collapsed, her energy sapped by the hard hit she'd recieved.

"Are you okay?" she asked Lynxmon concernedly.

"That was a hard hit," Adam evaluated.

"I'll be okay," Lynxmon replied. "Just give me a minute."

"Good," Meggy smiled. She turned to Adam. "You're alright?"

"Yeah, but what are we going to do to beat Unimon?" Adam asked, frightened for his, Kunemon's, and now Meggy's and Lynxmon's safety.

"We'll be fine," Meggy replied confidently.

"Nightmare Shocker!" Vilemon appeared, rocketing into the air while spinning rapidly, sending the dark yellow electricity of Vilemon's attack spiraling around him. He stopped spinning suddenly, the electricity lancing towards Unimon. Unimon cried out in pain as the electricity collided with his side.

"Good job, Vilemon!" Cameron yelled, running up onto the flat summit and over to Meggy, Adam, and their partners.

"Great timing," Meggy complimented.

"Thanks," Cameron said.

"Horn Blaster!" Unimon shot a blue-green blast at Vilemon, who dodged it by an inch.

"Nice try!" Vilemon taunted. He shot over the summit of the mountain, followed closely by Unimon.

Vilemon twisted around, launching Nightmare Shocker at Unimon, who dodged to the right.

"Aerial Gallop!" The wind knocked Vilemon off balance, and he was hit by a Horn Blaster. DemiDevimon careened from the blast and Cameron ran to him, catching him in his arms and looking at his weakened and broken body.

"DemiDevimon," he whispered.

"Ha ha ha!" Unimon gloated from above, savoring his imminent victory.

"You jerk!" Adam yelled, running up beside Cameron and his fallen partner. "We're going to put you out of business!"

"How do you plan on doing that?" Unimon laughed. "I hope not by using your pathetically weak Kunemon!"

"Kunemon's not weak!"

"But what can I do against him?" Kunemon asked. "He's up in the air, and he's a powerful Champion level Digimon. I'm only a Rookie."

"That's only one level," Adam said. "You can still beat him."

"It is unlikely."

"Oh no it's not!" Adam yelled. "You're strong Kunemon. You just have to believe in yourself like I believe in you! I need you!"

"I wish to protect you, but -"

"Sorry to cut this short," Unimon cried, "but . . . Horn Blaster!"

"Kunemon!" Adam cried.

"No!" Kunemon yelled. "I won't let you hurt him!

"Kunemon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Kuwagamon!"

He was enormous. Red, with some black markings on its head, Kuwagamon stretched his two pairs of arms and stomped his two legs. His large wings buzzed and his pincers clanged together with a sound like metal-on-metal. He unleashed an angered roar from his tooth-lined mouth, which had teeth on both the upper, lower, left, and right.

The blue-green ball of energy exploded on Kuwagamon's armored head, but Kuwagamon seemed unaffected.

"Kuwagamon," Adam breathed. "Go get him!"

"Scissor Claw!" Kuwagamon's pincers glowed with red energy, and he sliced them together, sending the energy flying at Unimon. Unimon was cut off guard, and pummelled by the explosive force of Kuwagamon's attack.

"Wow!" Adam and Cameron said in unison.

"You think that will stop me?" Unimon drawled. "Think again!"

They began an aerial ballet, clashing and retreating, flying in a circle high above Infinity Mountain.

"Kuwagamon! Take him out!" Adam yelled.

"I've got you now!" Kuwagamon roared, rushing forward with more strength.

Unimon cried out as he was clamped tightly in Kuwagamon's mighty pincers. "Power Guillotine!" Kuwagamon cried triumphantly, clamping down with incredible force.

"Aaaah!" Unimon screamed in pain, and there was a bursting sound. Black particles lifted from Unimon's back and disappeared. Unimon slumped in Kuwagamon's grip, and Kuwagamon lightened up on the force he'd been applying. He flew back to the summit and placed Unimon gently on the ground.

In a few moments, Unimon revived. "Are you okay now?" Adam asked him.

"Yes," he grunted. "Thank you for freeing me from that evil."

"That's kind of what we do," Meggy joked.

"I've seen those gears before," Unimon explained.

"We've encountered them before," Adam said.

"I knew they were no good, but I had no idea of their true evil power," Unimon shook his head, disappointed in himself.

"We've destroyed all the ones we've encountered," Cameron explained.

"And that's my plan as well. I will, from this day forth, destroy any and all black gears I see!"

"Great!" the kids and Digimon cried in unison.

"I don't want to waste any time!"

"Good!" Adam cried. Unimon flapped his wings and soon disappeared from view.

"Let's get down to the others," Meggy suggested. "They're worried about you."

Lynxmon DeDigivolved and they climbed on Kuwagamon's back. He rose into the air.

"Look!" Meggy said, pointing. The boys followed her gaze and saw a mansion off in the distance. "Looks like Blake was right."

"Let's get down and get going," Camer0n said. Kuwagamon began his descent.

They left the summit of Infinity Mountain with its Roman temple and descended easily on the massive Kuwagamon to the others. When they arrived, they were greeted with cheers for the new Digivolution and all sat down to give Kunemon a little snack while Adam told the whole story.

-

-

Next: Evil Shows His Face.


	8. The Touch of Evil

Author's Note: HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!!! Enjoy the big feast in this chapter, which coincidentally happens to be the chapter I release on Thanksgiving night! : ) Sorry it took me so long to update, but here it is. Hopefully a long-awaited chapter, and one I think/hope will be well worth it. Enjoy!

**CHAPTER EIGHT**

**The Touch of Evil**

Leomon was the lord of the forest. He stood tall and strong, his body seemingly made up of nothing but fur, teeth, claws, and rippling muscles. His Beast King Sword was sheathed on his back, where it was very easily accessible to him in a tight spot.

Currently, Leomon was traversing the cliffs that connected to Infinity Mountain, rising about a hundred feet over the forest.

A light breeze ruffled Leomon's mane, and Leomon's nose twitched. A vile scent had reached his nose. A familiar, vile scent.

"Ogremon," he growled.

"Well, well, well!" the grating voice of Leomon's sworn rival sounded. He appeared on the ridge right above Leomon.

Unlike Leomon, Ogremon's skin was green, clammy, and didn't have any fur at all. Ogremon had muscles, although he wasn't as filled out as Leomon. He had a gaping mouth lined with uneven teeth, and two horns on his head that were black with red stripes. He also had a shaggy white head of hair. The golden ring in his nose glinted dully in the sunlight.

"What brings a lowly forest-feline like you to these parts?" Ogremon drawled.

"I may traverse where I please, fiend!" Leomon replied valiantly, unsheathing his sword and preparing for battle.

Unlike a sword, Ogremon carried a large bone with big black spikes at the end. He slapped it into his palm menacingly. "Here, kitty!"

They leapt into the air, thrashing out at each other. Leomon's sword clanged harmlessly off of Ogremon's steel-hard weapon.

Ogremon landed a little off balance, but Leomon didn't miss a beat. He was already rocketing back towards Ogremon, his weapon and eyes both searching as one for the weak spot in Ogremon's stance.

Leomon's incredible sword came down on Ogremon's large bone-stick. He pressed Ogremon's arms down towards his face, and before Ogremon could react, Leomon's foot came up, pushing Ogremon in the stomach and sending him flying. He landed on the ground, his weapon held in a completely useless position as Leomon charged at him.

_I lost?!_ Ogremon thought in disbelief. _No!_

"Stop right there!" a voice said from above.

Leomon froze, and both he and Ogremon looked around for the source.

He was standing above them. He was completely pitch black, and just the sight of him sent chills down Leomon's spine.

His black mask covered the upper half of his face. Horizontal red slits, glinting with malice, served as his eyes, and his lower face was a deathly gray. He was tall, and his arms were so long and thin that they his fingers hovered just above the ground. His fingers themselves were slender. He had two large, bat-like wings folded behind him.

"Who are you?" Leomon yelled.

"I am," Devimon paused for effect, his voice dripping with evil, "your new master!"

Leomon cried out as Devimon's black hand hurtled towards him. Stabbing his fingers into Leomon's back, Devimon unleashed black electricity that engulfed Leomon. Leomon's scream pierced the entire area.

-

"What was that?" Rabbitmon's ears twitched.

"What was what?" Meggy asked her partner, suddenly concerned.

Prairiemon and Lopmon's large ears twitched as well. "I heard it too," Prairiemon said.

"What did it sound like?" Rainey asked Lopmon.

"A scream."

"Yeah," Rabbitmon agreed. "Let's go see what it is!"

Rabbitmon and Meggy ran forward, followed by Casey, Rainey, Blake and their partners. Becca, Cameron, and Adam were right behind with their Digimon.

Coming around a corner, they saw a familiar figure in front of them on the wide path.

"Is that . . . Leomon?" Casey asked in disbelief.

"It's not me, if that's what you're wondering," Prairiemon muttered.

The Leomon stood there, his head down a little, his face shadowed before them and his hand behind his back. His golden mane waved in a light breeze that kicked up for a moment.

"I don't like this, guys," Adam whispered, noting the nearly vertical wall to their right and the straight drop to their left.

The kids turned at a sound behind them. Now, on the side opposite Leomon, a green, ogre-like Digimon stood.

"Who are _you?_" Becca cried disgustedly.

The monstrosity growled, with a large smile on his gaping mouth. "I am Ogremon!"

"We have been ordered by our master to destroy you," Leomon growled menacingly, raising his head slightly and revealing his pupilless eyes.

"Oh my -" Becca started.

"Don't Leomon have blue eyes . . . and pupils?" Casey asked. "Or is that just you?"

"He should have some kind of eyes," Prairiemon growled, raising his claws defensively and anticipating attack from the Leomon.

Blake, Casey, Meggy, Rainey, and their Digimon stood facing Leomon, while Becca, Cameron, and Adam faced off against Ogremon with their partners.

Leomon roared and leapt towards the kids, bringing his hand out from behind his back, holding his sword, and bringing it into attack position in less than a second.

"Gizamon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Monochromon!"

"Prairiemon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Leomon!"

"Rabbitmon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Lynxmon!"

Lynxmon shot off to get behind the evil Leomon and Casey's Leomon leapt into the air to intercept Evil Leomon's attack.

-

"You're mine!" Ogremon said on the other side of the group, launching himself at the kids with his bone-club up and its menacing spikes preparing to rip the children and their Digimon to shreds.

"Kunemon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Kuwagamon!"

"Otamamon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Tortomon!"

"DemiDevimon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Vilemon!"

Vilemon and Kuwagamon shot into the air, and Tortomon's spikes glowed with energ as Ogremon approached.

"Strong Carapace!" Tortomon cried, sending a spray of hard, super-powered spikes into Ogremon, causing a great explosion with each impact and sending Ogremon plummeting back to the ground.

-

"Wild Nail Rush!" Lynxmon cried, slashing unsuccessfully at Evil Leomon, who was currently grappling with Leomon.

"Monochromon!" Leomon growled, signaling to his friend. Monochromon charged at Evil Leomon, whom Leomon was keeping still. Evil Leomon's back was turned to Monochromon, and Monochromon tried to hit him with his nose-spike. Evil Leomon leaped at the last second, pulling Leomon with him as he did. Evil Leomon, in midair, powered up his flamed Fist of the Beast King, and brought it right into Leomon's stomach, sending him hurtling towards the ground. Leomon slammed painfully to the dirt.

"Leomon!" Monochromon grunted, running to stand over his injured friend and protect him from Evil Leomon.

Evil Leomon landed and launched himself at Monochromon and the fallen Leomon. Monochromon tried to turn to attack, but his bulk prevented it. Evil Leomon slammed his sword into Monochromon's touch armor, sending Monochromon crashing into the wall. Evil Leomon brought his sword up, preparing to strike Leomon.

"Wild Nail Rush!" Lynxmon hurtled by again, leaving three red gashes on Evil Leomon's naked back. Evil Leomon cried out, dropping his sword right beside Leomon.

"Yeah! Go Lynxmon!" Meggy cheered.

Evil Leomon fell to his knees, panting in pain.

-

Ogremon cried out as the Nightmare Shocker hit him right in the small of the back.

"Ooh, little kiddies, you're gonna pay for that one!" Ogremon laughed.

Kuwagamon swooped in and plucked Ogremon from the ground. He flew off into the air as Ogremon beat his club uselessly against Kuwagamon's steel-hard pincers.

"Where's the gear?" Adam asked Cameron.

"I don't know," Cameron replied. "I didn't see one."

"Neither did I," Becca added, staring intently at the now aerial battle.

"Power Guillotine!" Kuwagamon announced, crushing Ogremon and then dropping him to the ground.

"Take it as a loss," Tortomon growled, placing her scaled foot on Ogremon's chest.

"Looks like you won too!" Blake said, looking over at their battle. Becca saw Evil Leomon shuddering in pain on the ground, being held down by Casey's partner, Leomon.

Suddenly, there was a great explosion above them. Everyone looked up, seeing a shower of dust and rocks was coming down upon the children and their Digimon.

"What the?!" Casey cried, racing for his brother and the small Lopmon.

Leomon released Evil Leomon, coming over Casey, Rainey, and Lopmon. Tortomon released Ogremon, and all the Digimon ran to protect their respective partners.

The rocks and debris fell around them for a few minutes, leaving nothing but dust and their Digimon as protective shields.

When the rocks stopped falling and the dust was settling to the ground, the children and their Digimon looked around for their enemies.

"Where'd they go?" Rainey asked.

"They must have used that explosion to run off," Adam said.

"But what caused the explosion?" Cameron wondered aloud.

"Haywire attack?" Blake suggested.

"I don't think so," Cameron shook his head. "I think something else caused that. _Someone _else."

The kids thought about these grim thoughts, but then Blake shook them from their thoughts.

"Let's just keep going," he said. "Put this fight behind us."

"Don't forget about it," Casey advised. "We need to learn from this battle."

"What are you thinking we should learn?" Meggy asked.

"That someone's after us," Casey replied. "Whether they are or are not attached to these gears we've been seeing, someone's after us, and they've enlisted Leomon and Ogremon to do their dirty work."

"Can we DeDigivolve now?" Monochromon asked his partner.

"Yeah."

All the Digimon glowed as they shrunk to their Rookie forms.

"It doesn't make sense," Prairiemon said when he'd finished DeDigivolution. "Leomon and Ogremon have always been very famous and infamous figures in the Digital World. Not only that, but they've _always _been rivals. They're natural enemies. I just don't understand how they can be working together now."

"Yeah," the other Digimon agreed.

"Let's go," Blake muttered, and he led them away from the battle scene and off, soon finding their way back into the forest, heading for the house Cameron, Meggy, and Adam had seen from atop Infinity Mountain.

"Maybe it's the guy that's after us," Casey suggested to his partner.

"Maybe," Prairiemon said. "But that means he's got control over one of them, and my bet is on Leomon."

"So he's after us," Casey said, counting off on his fingers, "he has control of Leomon somehow, and he's possibly connected to these black gears."

"Not good," Prairiemon said.

-

They had left the cliff-like area and re-entered the forest. The Digimon's condition had slowly degraded, until they were being carried on their partner's backs or in their partner's arms.

"You want some too?" Adam asked Lopmon, on Rainey's shoulder. He had opened up his backpack, giving fruit to Kunemon and the other Digimon who'd Digivolved earlier.

"No, thanks," Lopmon replied. "I didn't even get to fight."

"You would've done awesome!" Rainey encouraged the rabbit-like creature. "It's just too bad you can't Digivolve yet, or you would rock even more!"

Lopmon blushed.

"So what exactly are we going towards?" Blake asked from the front, noticing uneasily that the light was now quickly fading.

"We saw a house or hotel or something from the mountain peak," Meggy replied.

"We should be seeing it right about now," Cameron reasoned.

They went on walking only a short distance longer until the brown roof of the aforementioned house loomed ahead.

"There it is!" they all cried at once, laughing happily that they'd finally find some rest.

"It's huge!" Blake exclaimed.

"And so beautiful!" Becca agreed.

It was indeed a beautiful house, although it showed a bit of aging. It was white, narrow horizontal planks of wood. It had many large, many-paned windows with green shutters. Two large oak doors were in the front. There were gorgeous Roman columns and a balcony above the doorway.

"Yay!" Rainey and Lopmon exclaimed, running forward to the great doors.

"Rainey, we don't know if it's safe!" Casey cried, going after his brother. The others followed suit.

They all stopped in front of the large, heavy doors. Staring up at their great height, Blake walked forward and, pulling with all of his strength, wrenched the door open.

It creaked as it swung outward, and the children and Digimon stared into a dark room. Blake led the way as they cautiously proceeded.

"Looks like a hotel," Blake whispered in the musty room. The floor was dust coated, but clearly discerned as wooden. The furniture was antique, red velvet. There were small end tables with either vases of flowers or unlit lamps.

"Looks like this place is kind of old," Meggy said uneasily.

"How about we call the desk clerk," Blake suggested. He walked up to a desk on the left side of the room and hit the bell on the desk. It rang out woefully, and Blake grimaced at the dust that was now on his fingers before wiping it off on his shorts.

They stood and waited, but nothing happened.

"Well, it's been fun," Meggy said sarcastically.

"I don't think anyone's here," Casey said, stopping himself from leaning against the desk just in time to prevent him from becoming dust-covered.

"I can't smell anything," Prairiemon said.

"Well, if no one's here, maybe no one's ever here," Adam said.

"Doesn't look like anyone's been here for a while," Becca said, casting a disgusted look at all the dust surrounding her.

"Well, if no one else is going to use this place, then why shouldn't we?" Blake asked rhetorically, tromping off towards the staircase down a short hall. The staircase led to a second floor that was partly visible from the children's current location.

"Guess its alright," Casey said, letting his guard down just a little and following Blake.

They all headed for the stairs. Rainey was bringing up the rear, and stopped to stair at the painting on the left wall of the passage to the stairs.

"Wow," Rainey breathed. "It's so beautiful!"  
"It is," Lopmon agreed. "What is it a picture of?"

"It's an angel," Rainey explained. The picture was of a blonde-haired, white robed individual with outstretched white wings, seemingly flying through golden space.

"What's an angel?"

"It's like a really powerful, pure person, but they live in heaven," Rainey smiled.

"What's heaven?" Lopmon asked.

"Rainey, there you are!" Casey said, trotting to his little brother. "Why'd you stop?"

"This picture is so beautiful, I wanted to look at it," Rainey explained. "Don't you think it's pretty?"

"Yeah, it's great," Casey said, not actually looking at the picture. He grabbed Rainey's arm gently and pulled him along to the second floor, their Digimon a step behind. "Don't get seperated from us again, okay?"

"Okay," Rainey grumbled, casting a wistful glance back to the picture and then allowing himself to be led back to the others.

-

"This place is so great!" Becca exclaimed fifteen minutes later. They had found two rooms full of beds and the girls had taken one while the guys had claimed the other. To Becca's great satisfaction, the front foyer seemed to be the only dust covered area of the mansion. This, however, had not changed the children's convictions to the long time vacancy of the mansion.

"All ready to explore?" Blake asked loudly.

"Do you ever run out of steam?" Meggy asked moodily, beginning to feel very fatigued.

Blake laughed and tromped off, followed by the others.

They walked down to the end of the hall and entered another hallway. Going through what soon became a network of large, spacious hallways, the children came upon a large room. Upon coming into the room, they all let out a gasp.

Before them was a table, stretching the length of the long room. A fancy white tablecloth was draped over the table and, upon that tablecloth, were baskets and trays and buckets and bowls full of the most delicious looking food. There was roast beef, pork chops, chicken legs and breasts, broccoli and cheese, pizza, celery, carrots, corn, mashed potatoes; everything anyone would ever want to eat was there, looking better than they'd ever seen it.

"Wow!" all fourteen cried out in delight.

"Who left all this stuff here?" Casey wondered aloud.

"Who cares?" Rainey laughed running to get a seat for Lopmon and himself.

"No one," Blake answered nonchalantly, getting a seat for Gizamon and for himself as well.

"I hope we're not eating someone else's dinner," Becca said worriedly, before shrugging it off and joining at the table with Otamamon. Everyone else followed suit, Casey being the last to do so.

"This looks so great!" Becca cried happily.

"Dig in, everybody," Blake directed, and they all began reaching for plates of food.

They ate their meal merrily, making small talk and generally savoring the entire moment.

"It's so wierd," Casey muttered to Prairiemon. "I just don't trust this place."

"You shouldn't worry so much," Prairiemon said through a mouthful of rolls.

"It's not bad to worry," Casey shrugged, reaching for dumplings.

"It's not good for you," Prairiemon objected. "You shouldn't worry all the time."

Casey looked at his partner, a little hurt. "I don't worry _all _the time."

"If you say so," Prairiemon said unsurely, turning back to his meal.

_I don't_, Casey assured himself. He was careful. He did worry a little. But not all the time. He was sure of it.

"This is the best thing that could happen to us!" Becca exclaimed across the table. "I feel like royalty, stumbling on all of these great things and not lifting a finger for any of it."

"It sure is a nice coincidence," Otamamon agreed.

"You got that right," Blake interjected beside her, turning immediately back to his meal.

"Ah, to be a princess," Becca sighed, dazing off into space and dreaming of being royalty.

"This is the coolest!" Rainey laughed, pouring chicken legs onto his plate.

"This food is delicious," Lopmon agreed happily.

-

The meal went deliciously, but nonetheless uneventfully. The children were very pleased and very full at the end, but, still up for adventure, Blake led the group into an unknown region of the house.

"Does it seem like it's getting hot?" Blake wondered aloud as they progressed along.

"Hot and damp," Gizamon agreed.

"Wonder why," Blake muttered, pulling open a door to find the answer.

"No! Way!" Becca and Meggy squealed delightedly.

They were staring at a screen that split an enormous open-air room in two. On both sides were tubs apparently fed by hot springs, full of bubbling, steaming water.

"This is so great!" Everyone exclaimed happily.

"Alright, let's get in!" Blake voiced everyone's thoughts and they all laughed as they rushed for the tubs. The guys went to the left and the girls took the right.

Removing all but their boxers, the guys got into the soothing water and all let out a collective sigh. The girls also stripped down to their most swimming suit-like undergarments and entered their personal hot tub.

"Wow, this feels so great," Becca sighed comfortably.

"You said it," Meggy, Otamamon, and Rabbitmon agreed contentedly.

"Shut up," Blake snapped to the other guys, snickering and holding back the laughs as he tried to eavesdrop on the girls.

"What are they saying," Lopmon asked.

"I can't hear with all you making that noise."

He strained to hear them, but got only silence. "Nice try, boys," they heard Meggy yell on the other side of the screen.

"What?" Blake said, playing dumb, getting an idea.

"Nice -" Meggy began, but was cut off bye a rain of water drops that were sent over the low screen from Blake.

"Blake you jerk!" Meggy yelled in mock-anger. She and Becca began laughing and sending water back over the screen as the rest of the guys joined in the fight.

-

The children had a water fight at the hot springs and then just relaxed, spending about an hour in the hot water. They then returned to their beds, the girls and their Digimon in one room, the guys and their Digimon in the other. They all stripped down to their bedclothes and crawled in. Good nights were exchanged and lights were shut off.

The beautiful angel picture was shrouded in the darkness of the mansion. Its golden glow diminished as the light reflecting off of it was put out. Then, in the silence of the night, dark horns began to come through the beautiful angel picture. The horns were preceeded by a figure, all in black, and suddenly it was the opposite of an angel that was standing in the hall of the mansion.

-

"I'll be right back," Blake whispered to Gizamon, and he tiptoed through the room full of sleeping boys and Digimon and crept to the door. He was heading for the bathroom.

He washed his hands after using the facilities and staggered outside the room. He got halfway back to his room before he realized that he'd left the light on. He turned around and his heart stopped.

He was standing in the shadows right beside the open door of the bathroom. His green flesh was ghostly and dark, but his sharp teeth and his big, evil eyes were glimmering in the weak artificial light.

"Ogremon!" Blake whispered, terrified and thankful he'd just emptied his tank, or he'd have had an accident.

"Good evening," Ogremon cackled, taking a step forward that brought the green, scaly skin of his foot into the light of the restroom.

"Aaaah!" Blake screamed, running back to the bedroom. The other guys were starting to sit up, rubbing their eyes groggily. Adam was reaching for his shirt while Cameron shook the deeply sleeping DemiDevimon awake. Blake ran across the room to the bed where Gizamon was preparing to come to his rescue. "It's Ogremon! He's in here!"

-

In the adjoining room, while Blake was making his way to the bathroom, Meggy's eyes shot open. She had heard soft but audible footsteps. Heavy yet padded footsteps that seemed to stop right at the side of Meggy's bed that she had her back to. Rabbitmon was curled up in her arms, and Meggy tried to see who was behind her without making it too obvious. She looked as far to the side as she could without turning her head, but her peripheral vision failed her.

She heard heavy breathing coming from behind her, and she thought she heard the sound of a sword being slowly and meticulously unsheathed. Her breath caught in her throat, and she exerted all her self-control to stop herself from breathing deeply or shuddering. She had to stay still, because she knew for a fact that whoever it was that was behind her was definitely not in the business of becoming her friend.

She was startled by a scream from the hall, coming from one of the boys, and both she and the being behind her jumped. She saw Becca shoot straight up in her bed, startling Otamamon awake, and a scream erupted from her throat.

"It's Leomon!"

-

Ogremon leapt into the room as the guys stared in horror. He was here, in this confined room, with his spiked club in hand, and there was nothing they could do.

"Gizamon!" Blake cried desperately.

Suddenly, a gust of cold wind hit the boys' shirtless bodies. Blake shivered and looked around. The walls were gone!

"What happened?" Gizamon cried.

"Blake!" Becca cried, and the boys saw that the walls seperating them and the girls room was gone. The boys blushed a little, embarassed to be almost totally naked in the prescence of the girls, also minimally clad.

"Help!" Becca screamed, pointing. Leomon was standing at the side of Meggy's bed with his sword drawn.

"Hey!" Blake cried before he'd even had another thought in his head. "Hey, big ugly! Come over here!"

"I will fulfill your spoken desire," Leomon growled, stomping slowly towards Blake, his menacing, pupilless eyes staring straight at Blake.

"Everything is gone!" Adam cried. Only broken pieces of the once existing second story wall were still in place. There were also holes in the not wooden but cobblestone floor that shone a broken, shambled downstairs as well. Everything was gone in the upstairs, and the downstairs was ruined. Even the beds were gone, except the ones that were occupied.

"Gizamon, Digivolve now!" Blake cried.

Blake held out his Digivice, but nothing happened. No light emitted from it, and no beeping sounds were made. He looked to his side and saw Gizamon laying on the sheets, clutching his stomach.

"What's wrong?" Blake cried worriedly.

"My stomach," Gizamon mumbled, pained. "So . . . hungry."

"But we ate all that food!"

The sound of cackling split the cold night air and sent chills down the spines of all children and Digimon. They looked around for the source as a black figure rose through one of the holes onto the second story.

"Who are you?" Casey yelled in fear.

"I am the darkness!" the figure replied. "I am the evil! I am that which haunts your steps and dreams!"

"Master!" Leomon growled, turning and giving the figure a bow.

"I am Devimon!" he cackled, sending laughter into the cold wind of the night.

"A devil Digimon?" Casey yelled.

"This is bad!" Prairiemon replied.

"You're behind this!" Blake yelled. "How did you stop Gizamon from Digivolving."

"All I did was drop the illusion," Devimon replied maliciously.

"You mean - ?" Cameron breathed.

"Yes!" Devimon cried triumphantly. "All of this - the home, the food, the hot springs - all of it was an illusion! None of this has been real!"

"You're kidding me!" Adam cried, feeling the pang of hunger enter his stomach and realizing the horrible truth of the situation.

"What are we going to do?" Rainey wailed, feeling tears well up in his eyes.

"I don't want to die!" Becca screamed.

"But you will," Leomon growled, grabbing Blake around the neck and lifting him up.

"Blake," Gizamon gasped, feeling weak from the battle earlier in the day and the total lack of food for the past too many hours.

"Die, child," Leomon growled, bringing up his sword.

"No!" Blake gasped desperately. Suddenly, light burst from his Digivice. Leomon let out a roar, dropping a gasping Blake back onto his bed. Leomon slumped to his knees, and when he recovered his posture, his eyes were normal and his look was of confusion and concern.

"Child?" Leomon asked. "What am I doing here?"

"You were going to kill me," Blake whispered, staring in amazement at his Digivice. It had somehow saved him by expelling the evil from Leomon.

"Leomon, how dare you forsake my control," Devimon roared from behind him.

"Devimon!" Leomon roared, spinning around and facing Devimon with a look of pure hate. "I won't let you hurt these kids!"

"You know who they are," Devimon said. "And you know who I am. I must kill them. All of them."

"We're just kids!" Becca wailed.

"Yeah, pick on a jerk your own size!" Adam challenged.

"The Chosen Children are not going to die, and certainly not at the unworthy hands of you!" Leomon roared.

"Chosen Children?" Cameron asked, more to himself than anyone else.

"Ah, I wasn't sure you knew that they were the DigiDestined children," Devimon drawled.

"They are DigiDestined, and you will keep your evil claws off of them," Leomon growled.

"DigiDestined?" Meggy wondered as the two Digimon talked.

"Wait a second," Cameron said, his mind racing. "It was you!"

"Hm?" Devimon grunted, looking down at Cameron pointing his finger accusingly at Devimon.

"You let loose all of those gears!" Cameron yelled.

A malicious smile puled up the side of Devimon's mouth. "Very perceptive, little boy. Yes, I am the master of the Black Gears."

"You made those gears just so they could hurt Digimon and turn them evil?" Rainey asked.

"No, I didn't make them," Devimon explained. "They have existed for ages. I simply found them in the depths of the DigiWorld, harnessed their dark powers, and unleashed them. I will use them to become the supreme ruler of the Digital World!"

"Not on my watch!" Blake challenged.

"You think you can stop me?" Devimon roared. "Attack him Ogremon!"  
"Not so fast, fool!" Leomon roared, turning and blocking Ogremon's sudden sneak-attack with his sword. He knocked Ogremon backwards and leapt into battle with him.

"This is certainly not how I had this evening planned," Devimon growled. "I didn't anticipate my power over Leomon slipping. I did not anticipating any of you being alive by now. I shall have to have you killed some other way."

"No you don't!" Casey challenged. He began to rise.

Devimon raised both hands and the beds rose into the air, holding a child, a Digimon, and the child's clothes on each. They all let out cries of alarm.

"What are you doing?" Blake screamed as they circled in the air around the devastated mansion.

"Instead of me taking your lives from you, you have taken a slave from me," Devimon said. "So now I will take away the source of your power and, mark my words, you will die!"

"Leave us alone!" Becca wailed.

"You've overcome all challenges you've faced thus far," Devimon said. "But how will you fare when you're all alone? Since you gain so much strength from your friends, allow me to send you by yourselves all over the Digital world!" Devimon cackled as the beds began to gain speed and raise higher and higher into the air.

Devimon's attention was no longer on the children. He was advancing on the battling Leomon and Ogremon.

"Devimon, I will not be your slave!"

"You have no choice in the matter. Feel the touch of evil!"

The children screamed in terror and dismay as Leomon's scream cut through the chill of the wind rushing past the children's ears.

"What are we going to do?" Becca wailed.

"Casey, don't leave me!" Rainey wept.

"I'm going to make sure nothing happens to you!" Casey replied, fighting back the tears of concern for his brother's welfare. "If we get seperated, I promise I'll come and find you!"

"It'll be okay everyone!" Meggy said. "We'll all be okay."

"Here we go!" Blake screamed. And the beds shot off in different directions.

They criss-crossed the night sky, finally falling to the earth. The wind rushed past the children's ears and ripped their screams away before they could be heard.

In only a minute, all that was heard was the harsh, cold wind.


	9. Subzero Ice Punch

Author's Note: Hey, AeroGuilmon04! Thanks for being my second official reviewer! You really helped me out by doing this and I hope I've helped you with my reviews. Yes in answer to your questions, but I've changed it up some, added a few things, dropped a few things, and forgot a few things. But it'll all turn out okay, so don't get discouraged by that. Besides, this is important for the sequel series . . .

**Previously . . .**

Devimon raised both hands and the beds rose into the air, holding a child, a Digimon, and the child's clothes on each. They all let out cries of alarm.

"What are you doing?" Blake screamed as they circled in the air around the devastated mansion.

"Instead of me taking your lives from you, you have taken a slave from me," Devimon said. "So now I will take away the source of your power and, mark my words, you will die!"

"Leave us alone!" Becca wailed.

"You've overcome all challenges you've faced thus far," Devimon said. "But how will you fare when you're all alone? Since you gain so much strength from your friends, allow me to send you by yourselves all over the Digital world!"

-

**CHAPTER NINE**

**Subzero Ice Punch**

Blake opened his eyes groggily and immediately felt sharp needles of cold hitting his skin. He rose his head and saw himself in a hard-blowing wind. Snow was rushing past all around. He brushed his hands through his hair and felt the cold wetness of snow. He now realized he was sitting in a cold, blizzard-ridden wasteland.

"Where am I?" he said. He looked down at his cold body and saw that he had nothing on but his boxer shorts. Looking around, he saw a bed, with one corner stuck in the snowy ground. The sheets were ruffled, and his clothes were scattered on the ground. Gizamon was laying in the snow nearby.

"Gizamon!" Blake yelled. He ignored the freezing cold numbing his entire body and ran shakily to his partner. Gizamon opened his eyes tiredly.

"Blake?" Gizamon whispered. Gizamon's vision cleared, and his eyes widened. He shot to his feet. "Blake! We have to get you some clothes!"

"They're over there," Blake pointed, shaking violently and uncontrollably.

"Get in them!" He cried frantically. Blake took a step forward, but his foot failed him and he fell to the snow as the cold engulfed his entire body. Gizamon fought back panic, running to the clothes lying on the ground and pulling them back to his best friend.

Gizamon helped his partner up and pulled on socks, shorts, then shirt. Gizamon started pulling Blake's shoes on for him while Blake started trying to rub warmth back into his hands from within the folds of his shirt.

"Are you okay?" Gizamon asked his partner worriedly.

Blowing his warm breath into cupped hands, Blake nodded. "Thanks, Gizamon," Blake smiled, starting to tie his shoes with hands that he could once more feel.

Standing up fully dressed, Blake checked his Digivice and began to walk. "Where are we going?" Gizamon asked.

"We have to find some shelter," Blake replied. "And maybe we'll find the others," he added hopefully.

"Devimon scattered us all over the place," Gizamon muttered sadly. "What if we don't ever find the others?"

"We will," Blake assured him, not really confident of that fact himself.

"We need to find food," Gizamon said, noticing the extreme discomfort he was feeling from all the hunger. "I won't be able to Digivolve in this condition."

"Well I'd love to help," Blake said, looking around the landscape, "but this place doesn't look promising."

They walked on for a few minutes, and the chill wind died down slightly. The two friends could hardly see because of all the snow swirling around. The darkness engulfed them, but they continued on.

Soon, Blake felt the texture of the terrain change. The crunch of snow disappeared and was replaced by a soft layer of snow on a hard surface. Looking down, Blake saw he was on ice. "Must be a lake."

"Be careful," Gizamon said concernedly. He didn't want Blake to fall through into icy water; Blake was already in pretty bad shape from the cold.

"We'll be okay," Blake assured him, but he was cut off by a gruff voice from somewhere in the blizzard.

"Subzero Ice Punch!"

"What the - ?" Blake muttered, but Gizamon cried out and pushed him to the hard ice. A shining blue wave rushed past where he'd been standing, freezing his ankles with little specs of ice.

"What was that?" Blake cried in alarm, rising to his feet and looking around for the direction he shouldn't run.

"There must be a mean Digimon around here somewhere," Gizamon growled. "I can't see anything!"

They stood still for a moment, but then the wind started to die down and slowly the landscape came into view.

They were in a canyon of sorts, with short, rocky walls surrounding the lake and area where Blake and Gizamon had landed. And in the middle of the lake, his fist glowing blue with a charged-up attack, was a snowman. He had a plump body, three black buttons on his chest, two arms, two legs, and a head with shiny black eyes and a button nose and two round, white ears.

"Frigimon!" Gizamon gasped.

"Why is he attacking us?" Blake asked, rubbing his eyes.

"Look at his stomach!"

Blake followed Gizamon's pointing claw. There, on the underside of Frigimon's robust midsection, was a Black Gear.

"Devimon!" Blake growled.

"Look out!" Gizamon cried again as Frigimon unleashed his second Subzero Ice Punch attack. The blue wave of freezing-cold energy shot past as Blake and Gizamon ran to the left along the slippery, icy lake.

"This is bad, Gizamon," Blake muttered. "Figimon's obviously a Champion level, and you're a Rookie with an empty stomach. You can't Digivolve to your Champion form, and you probably can't even cook up enough fire for a Giza Destroyer!"

"As much as I hate to admit it, you're right," Gizamon said tensely.

"Subzero -" Frigimon began, but he was cut off as electricity seared across his snow-like white skin.

"What the -" Blake and Gizamon cried out.

"Good job, Kunemon! Keep up the good work!"

Blake recognized the voice and the attack. "It's Adam!" both he and his Digimon partner exclaimed.

Adam was standing atop one of the rocky canyon walls. His yellow, worm-like Digimon partner was standing by his side, readying himself to attack again.

"Hey, Blake!" Adam called cheerfully, waving his hand. He was holding something.

"Adam! Perfect timing!"

"Yeah, but Kunemon can't do this alone. Want to help out?"

"I would, but Gizamon's got no food in his belly."

"I can fix that," Adam said, rearing back and hurling the object through the air. Blake stumbled around, trying to catch it. It bounced off his hand and Gizamon dove for the picture-perfect catch right before the object hit the ground.

"Fruit!" they both exclaimed.

"Eat fast!" Blake encouraged. Gizamon nodded and started chowing down.

Up on the ridge, Adam was whispering advice to his partner. "Be careful Kunemon. I know you got some food, but I don't think it's enough for a Digivolution. We're gonna have to play this one smarter than the battles in our past. It's just you and Gizamon now."

"I will not fail you, friend," Kunemon replied nobly. He leapt off the ridge and latched onto Frigimon's back. "Have at you, villain!" he cheered as Frigimon thrashed about angrily. "Electro Thread!"

Streaks of lightning seared Frigimon, who roared in pain and anger. Frigimon began to thrash about uncontrollably while Kunemon held on for dear life.

"Giza Destroyer!" A huge fireball launched towards the thrashing Digimon, exploding painfully on Frigimon's thrashing arms. Frigimon got knocked off balance for a moment, but recovered.

"Off me!" he roared, ripping Kunemon off his back and tossing him to the icy ground. "Now it's payback time! Subzero -"

"Giza Destroyer!" The powerful fireball collided with Frigimon's glowing blue fist, diminishing the ice energy with a sizzle.

"Thanks!" Adam cried out to Gizamon.

"Of course!" Gizamon replied.

"Subzero Ice Punch!" Frigimon roared yet again. This time his attack collided right on Gizamon. Gizamon's body was thrown limply away, crashing into Blake, who fell over, thankfully onto the soft, snowy ground.

"Gizamon! No!" Blake cried, seeing his friend frozen, his normally yellow amphibian skin a sick blue-green color. "He's frozen!" Blake wailed to Adam.

"Oh no!" Adam cried. He started to slide down the canyon. "I've got to help Kunemon!"

"Adam, protect yourself!" Kunemon cried valiantly.

"Subzero Ice Punch!" An icy fist slammed to the ground, missing Kunemon by inches. The ice groaned angrily, but Frigimon took no notice, rearing back for another punch.

"Poison Thread!" Kunemon announced, sending a purple stream of acidic string into Frigimon's eyes.

"Aaaah!" Frigimon cried in agony. He rocked back, holding his eyes, and Kunemon scrabbled away, his little prong-legs scraping along the slick ice before gaining a little tracksion. Frigimon powered up an attack and swiped blindly, freezing the air and pounding the ice in his search for Kunemon.

Kunemon was scrabbling away as fast as possible when a fist collided with the ice just behind him. The blast of icy energy sent Kunemon flying, unconsious. Adam ran and dived, catching Kunemon and cradling him in his arms.

Frigimon continued to thrash and scream for a moment, and then the pain died down. Frigimon breathed and opened his watering eyes. There were the two children, their Digimon out of the fight. He would kill them now.

Frigimon took a menacing step towards the children - and the ice gave away. In a splash and explosion of ice, Frigimon was plunged into the freezing depths of the lake.

Adam and Blake stared intently at the lake for a moment, wondering if Frigimon had survived. After a minute, they decided he was gone. Blake spat in the direction Frigimon had fallen, and the boys began to walk off.

"We need to find a cave," Adam explained. "I have some wood left over from previous camp fires. If we find a cave where it's safe to set up, we'll be able to defrost Gizamon."

Blake stared sadly at his blue-green partner, looking so weak and helpless in his arms. What would Blake do if Gizamon didn't make it?

Blake shook his head. He didn't need to start thinking like that.

They walked for a few minutes and Kunemon regained consciousness. They continued on as the snow and wind began to once again increase in violence. "This isn't good," Blake grunted. "I don't want Gizamon to keep getting colder, but this blizzard sure isn't helping!"

"I saw one on my way to find you," Adam explained. "We're almost there." Adam worriedly took note of not only the frozen Gizamon, but of Blake's violent shudders. The cold was getting to him.

Sure enough, a cave soon loomed in their vision. Pushing aside some of the built-up snow, Adam allowed Blake in first, then followed Kunemon inside.

The cave was small, really just a hole in the side of a cliff-face. Adam immediately began pulling out firewood. He took note of the chill of the cave, but also how the wind was kept out by the snowdrift built up at the mouth of the cave. A fire would warm this place up quick.

"Hurry," Blake said, looking worriedly at his little partner.

"It'll be okay," Adam assured him, placing a final plank of dry wood down onto the small pile. "Kunemon?"

"Yes, Adam," Kunemon knew what to do. "Electro thread."

The blue electricity streaked from Kunemon's beak, zapping the wood pile and quickly setting the dry pieces alight.

Blake smiled and closed his eyes for just a moment, enjoying the crackling fire, before placing Gizamon right in front of the fire. Then he took his shirt off.

"What are you doing?" Adam asked. "Looking forward to getting pneumonia?"

"I figure that, since friction causes heat, the more friction I make the sooner Gizamon wakes up," Blake said. He wrapped the shirt tightly around his hands and began to rub the small ice-coating on Gizamon hard and fast.

Adam smiled, staring at the determined look on Blake's face. He really cared a lot for the little digital monster. But then, Adam reasoned, he'd probably do the same thing if Kunemon was in a similar bind. Despite how strange their Digimon were, Adam realized they'd all become very close friends after all they'd been through the last couple of days.

"Here," Adam said, sitting beside Blake and taking his own shirt off. "Let me help." He began to rub Gizamon's ice-coating in another location.

Blake smiled. "Thanks, Adam. You're a real friend."

-

Adam had gone to sleep well before Blake had, and when he'd awoken, he'd found Blake laying with Gizamon wrapped in his shirt. Gizamon still had a blue-green tint, but his skin was almost back to it's normal yellow. Adam had woken Kunemon up and prompted him to zap the dying fire. After it had renewed strength and a few new sticks, Adam began cooking some fruit. The Digimon weren't going hungry today.

"Morning," Blake said groggily, sitting up. He shivered and looked down at his cold, shirtless body.

"I couldn't figure out a way to keep you and Gizamon warm without waking you," Adam explained sheepishly.

"It's okay," Blake said. "I wanted to make a sacrifice for my friend."

"I hope you're not sick," Adam said next.

"I don't think so, although I was a little worried I would be," Blake laughed. He pulled his shirt off of Gizamon and put it back on. "I wonder if Gizamon's okay. The color's almost back."

"I think he needs a little jump start, don't you, Kunemon?" Adam said, and before Blake could ask what he meant, Kunemon unleashed Electro Thread. The attack zapped the unconscious form of Gizamon.

"Be careful!" Blake cried in alarm, looking at Gizamon.

Gizamon lay there, still. Adam's eyes became downcast, and Kunemon's head drooped a little. But then Gizamon twitched. And sniffed. And opened his eyes.

"Gizamon!" Blake yelled. He grabbed his friend up in his arms and squeezed tight. Gizamon hugged back. "I was so worried," Blake choked out.

"Thanks, Blake," Gizamon said. "Thanks for helping me."

"Any time, buddy."

"I hate to spoil the moment," Adam said, "but it's time for breakfast."

"Yeah!" Blake and Gizamon exclaimed. They turned to Adam as he served portions of cooked fruit to everyone.

"This looks delicious!" Adam said smugly.

"It smells delicious!" Blake agreed, reaching out greedily.

"It is delicious!" Gizamon exclaimed through a mouthful of fruit.

They ate their breakfast happily, as Gizamon urged Blake to recount the help he'd given Gizamon the night before. Blake humbly obliged, and they enjoyed the first good, peaceful meal since the previous day.

-

The boys and Digimon pushed through the wall of snow covering the mouth of the cave and came out upon a winter wonderland. There was a forest of evergreen trees before them, each tree's branch holding a soft coating of pure, white snow. Soft snow covered the ground, making it smooth and flawless. A chill wind nipped the boys' noses, pushing away all lingering fatigue.

"Wow, this morning is beautiful!" Blake exclaimed, smiling.

"Yep. I don't like the cold too much, but this is pretty excellent!" Adam agreed.

Blake breathed deep. "Ah! That morning air is just great!"

"It's so perfect-looking," Adam said, admiring the scenery.

"Now, we need to make use of this day," Blake said, happy that it was bright and sunny, but not so much that the snow was blinding. "Devimon was right: We do need each other. So let's go find the others!"

"Right!" Adam agreed. "I think I saw when we were falling that we're on an island off the mainland."

"We need to get back," Gizamon put in.

"Yep," Blake agreed. "We should check out this island and then head back to Infinity Mountain when we get to this island's coast. I'd bet the others are gonna be searching for us and then heading back, too."

"Yeah!" Gizamon agreed joyously.

"That is, if they're not . . ." Adam let the statement hang.

"They're not," Blake said forcefully. "Now come on."

Just then, they heard a loud thump behind them. They turned and their chill breath caught in their throats.

"Thought you'd gotten rid of me, did you?" Frigimon growled menacingly.

"Actually, yeah," Adam gulped.

"Sure am glad you made breakfast now," Blake said, staring in determination at Frigimon. "Let's go, Gizamon!"

"I'm on it!"

"Right!" Adam said. He looked at his partner. "You too, Kunemon!"

"I anticipated this order," Kunemon said, leaping forward.

The boys cried out in unison, "Digivolve!"

"Gizamon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Monochromon!"

"Kunemon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Kuwagamon!"

"Yeah! How do you like me now?" Blake gloated.

"Kuwagamon's back!" Adam crowed. "Snowmen beware!"

"You are foolish to attack me," Frigimon said, taking an involuntary step back.

"What was that?" Monochromon growled.

"I think he wants to taste some heat!" Kuwagamon joked.

"Volcanic Strike!" The enormous fireball streaked towards Frigimon, engulfing him in smoke and flame.

"Subzero Ice Punch!" he roared. The blue energy shot towards Monochromon, knocking him to the ground. Monochromon began to get up as Kuwagamon swept past.

"Scissor Claw!" Kuwagamon's pincers began to glow, and at the shake of his head, Kuwagamon sent the energy flying at Frigimon. The yellow energy exploded on impact, and Frigimon let out a scream of rage.

"Slamming Attack!" the now righted Monochromon cried. He charged, causing the earth to shake and the snow to fall from the tree branches. Monochromon slammed his horned nose into the plush belly of Frigimon, pushing him back. Frigimon checked his footing and let loose a Subzero Ice Punch right into Monochromon's jaw. Monochromon was thrown back, DeDigivolving in a glow of golden light to a dazed Gizamon.

Kuwagamon roared angrily, swooping in. He picked Frigimon up by his robust middle. "Scissor Claw!" he announced. His pincers glowed golden again, and then exploded on Frigimon. Kuwagamon dropped Frigimon and buzzed his wings to regain the balance lost by the force of his own attack. Frigimon dropped to the ground.

The boys stared at Frigimon, laying face down in the snow. Gizamon was in Blake's arms and Kuwagamon hovered protectively above the boys.

Frigimon got up slowly, shakily. They could immediately see the difference. His black eyes were concerned and calm, showing signs of pain and fatigue. The gear in his tummy was gone.

"Frigimon! You're alright!" Blake exclaimed happily.

"Good job!" Adam cheered Kuwagamon as he DeDigivolved back to Kunemon.

"I'm so sorry children," Frigimon said remorsefully. "I could see you, but I couldn't stop myself."

"It was that gear," Blake explained. "It took control over you."

"Why?" Frigimon asked.

"Devimon set them loose," Adam replied. "He wants to rule over the DigiWorld."

Frigimon seemed to struggle with this concept of evil for a moment, then decided on something.

"Children," he said, "I cannot fight this Devimon. He's probably too strong for me. But I think you can, or is that not what you're doing?" The boys nodded confirmation, and he continued. "I can't take you all the way back to File Island, but I can take you to the next island closest."

"File Island?" the boys asked.

"That's the name of the mainland," Frigimon explained.

"Oh."

"Thanks for your help," Blake said cheerfully.

"It's the least I can do," Frigimon replied warmly. "Are you ready to go?"

"We wanted to see if our friends are on this island," Blake replied.

"More children like you?" Frigimon looked puzzled for a moment. "They didn't happen to be riding beds like you, were they?"

"Should'a been," Blake replied.

"No, no more children fell to this island," Frigimon replied, sorry he couldn't help. "But, they could have fallen to some of the other islands surrounding File Island."

"Yeah," Adam nodded.

"Well, why are we just standing around here?" Blake said. "Let's get going!"

Frigimon led them off. In minutes they were at the coast, staring at the sea. They could see another island pretty close by, and beyond that, yet another. In the center of the farthest isle was a large mountain, shooting into the sky.

"File Island," Blake muttered. "We have to get back there."

"I'm taking you to that island," Frigimon pointed. "It'll take you about half the way to File Island."

"Thanks," Adam said. "We'll be able to make it from there."

"Good," Frigimon's eyes showed that he was smiling. He held out his hands and picked the boys up, placing one boy and his Digimon partner on either shoulder.

"Now, how are we going to do this?" Blake asked, looking uncertainly at the water.

"Like this!" Frigimon grunted, rearing back. "Subzero Ice Punch!" His fist slammed into the water, and it instantly froze.

"Oh," Blake said sheepishly. "That's how."

And so, the boys rode a snowman across an ice bridge towards a new island.

"We're going to find the others," Blake said. "And then, Devimon won't know what hit him!"

-

Author's Notes: Happy holidays, everyone! I wrote this chapter and decided that it was very wintery. So have a great winter/holiday season, and I'll keep on truckin' with these chapters. Sure, they won't pop out two to a week, but I'm gonna try and go a little faster than I have been.

A/N: Let it be known! A countdown shall begin! In four chapters, season one of this story, Digimon: Digital Monsters, is OVER! That means chapter thirteen is the deadline, and this chapter will help lead up to that conclusion of season one! Four to go! Excitement!


	10. Legend of the Digivice

**Previously . . .**

Devimon raised both hands and the beds rose into the air, holding a child, a Digimon, and the child's clothes on each. They all let out cries of alarm.

"What are you doing?" Blake screamed as they circled in the air around the devastated mansion.

"Instead of me taking your lives from you, you have taken a slave from me," Devimon said. "So now I will take away the source of your power and, mark my words, you will die!"

"Leave us alone!" Becca wailed.

"You've overcome all challenges you've faced thus far," Devimon said. "But how will you fare when you're all alone? Since you gain so much strength from your friends, allow me to send you by yourselves all over the Digital world!"

-

**CHAPTER TEN**

**Legend of the Digivice**

She felt something sitting on her chest. Upon opening her eyes, she discovered that her eyes weren't working. Slowly, her eyes began to come into focus. At first, she saw a yellow blob in front of her, but as her eyes cleared, she -

"Aaaahhh!" Becca felt the scream erupt from her lips, and the creature sitting on top of her jumped in fear, falling off of her.

Becca pushed herself away from it, coming to a stop with her back pressed against a tree.

She was in a tropical rain forest. Everything around her was lush and green, and the air was warm and damp. Light shafted through the canopy of trees. A bed was lying on its side in the dirt, Becca's clothes scattered about.

"Wha - what are you?" Becca cried as the creature righted itself.

It was yellow, like mustard, and looked like a head with arms. The head was like a cone, with three layers stacked on top of each other, each layer a bit thinner than the one underneath it. It had thin, spindly arms with black belts wrapped around its wrists. At the intersection of the bottom and middle body layer was the mouth, wrapping around the entire body. It was large and gaping with big, white teeth and a fat, lolling mouth. Two goofy eyes adorned the top section, and a little gelatenous blob served as a hairpiece.

"My name is Sukamon!" it exclaimed with a goofy, doofus voice. "I'm protecting you, beautiful."

"Ugh!" Becca cringed, making a disgusted face at Sukamon. "Why are you protecting me? Where's Otamamon?"

"She went to clear her head," Sukamon said, bouncing up and down.

"Okay," Becca said, trying to slow her brain down and think logically. "First things first, you need to turn around and not look while I put my clothes on."

With a downcast look on his silly face, Sukamon obliged. Becca hurriedly put her clothes on, then walked pristenely past Sukamon. Sukamon smiled at the sight of her and bobbed along behind her.

"Where did you say Otamamon is?" Becca asked worriedly, looking at Sukamon over her shoulder.

"Just through those trees."

In only moments, the trees opened up and Becca saw her blue, tadpole Digimon on the banks of a gentle jungle river. Otamamon was washing her face. A pink mouse was standing at Otamamon's side.

"Otamamon!" Becca exclaimed. Her partner was startled at first, but then turned and excitedly jumped into her friend's arms.

"Becca! You're awake!"

"Yep! How do you feel?"

"I've been better," Otamamon admitted, rubbing her head, "but I'm okay."

"That's good," Becca smiled.

"You're not hurt, are you?"

"No."

"Thanks for watching after her, Sukamon," Otamamon said to the strange Digimon.

"Any time!" Sukamon exclaimed, shooting a glance at Becca's face and blushing. Becca caught it and gave him an angry look, but he'd already averted his gaze.

"Ready to get some food?" the pink mouse asked. Becca now got a good look at him and yelped in surprise.

He was very small, with a raspy, shaky voice. He had two big white, round eyes with tiny black pupils pointing in different directions. He had a big, toothy mouth and a small, round, black nose at the end of his long snout. He stood on two legs, and had a curving tail lying limply on the ground. All of him _should _have been neat and rounded, but it looked like he'd been badly drawn into reality. His circular ears were imperfectly shaped, only one eye seemed functional, and he seemed to involuntarily cower.

"Sounds good," Otamamon replied.

"Um . . . " Becca piped up, " . . . who are you?"

"That's Chuumon," Otamamon replied, as the now named Digimon, Chuumon, shuddered for no reason.

"It's nice to meet you," Becca said sweetly, seeing how totally harmless Chuumon appeared to be.

"We can find some fruit at the tree where you woke up," Sukamon said, jumping between Becca and Chuumon.

The four walked back to the overturned bed and Sukamon and Chuumon shot into the trees. Fruit began dropping to the ground as Sukamon and Chuumon rushed about with strange prescision and speed.

"Wow! They're so fast!" Becca exclaimed. Otamamon said something through a muffled mouthful of fruit, but it was inaudible. Becca bit into her own fruit, which was large, orange colored, and pear shaped. She bit into it and smiled. It was juicy and sweet, tasting like an orange, apple, pear, and a bit of pineapple had been mixed together in a fruit drink that coagulated into the soft interior of the fruit.

"This is so delicious!" Becca cried happily.

"Thanks!" Sukamon said, plopping down next to Becca with Chuumon on his shoulder, making her jump slightly. "We watch after these trees ourselves."

"Mmm!" Becca and Otamamon said, delighting in the blissful goodness of the fruit.

"Sounds like you really like it!" Sukamon said. "How 'bout a kiss?"

Becca's face went from delight to anger immediately. "Eew!" She cried. "No way, you perv!" She slapped Sukamon hard across the . . . cheek? He looked slightly dejected, but recovered.

"No kissing!" Becca asserted, pointing her finger accusingly at Sukamon.

"Okay," both he and his pink friends sighed sadly.

Becca and Otamamon finished their meal, Becca under the speculation of Sukamon and Chuumon. As Becca stood, sighing contentedly from the delicious food, she turned to the two unusual Digimon. "Did you see any other people come to this island?" Becca asked.

The Digimon looked terrified to give her the wrong answer. "I don't know," Sukamon said, slowly and sheepishly.

Chuumon attempted to snap his fingers, shuddering at his failure before saying, "I think I saw another bed, but I'm not sure . . ."

"You did!" Becca exclaimed. "Where do you think I can find them?"

Chuumon made a grinding sound in his throat, seemingly exhasperated, before saying, "I don't know. I do know a good place to find someone . . ." he suggested.

"What do you mean?" Becca asked.

"There's a pyramid close to the coast. If someone riding a bed in the air was to see it, they'd probably make for it."

"A pyramid?" Otamamon repeated.

"That's right," Sukamon piped up. "It's an ancient pyramid. It's full of runes and things. It's a nice landmark, but there's a powerful guardian that keeps people out of it."

"That's okay," Becca reasoned. "We just need to not go in." She smiled. "If anyone else is on this island, we'll find them!"

"Right!" Otamamon agreed.

"Sukamon," Becca said sweetly, batting her eyelashes at him and making him blush, "would you lead us to the pyramid?"

"Well, uh, um, uh," Sukamon stuttered. He simply nodded and began hopping off. Chuumon made the grinding throat sound again as Becca and Otamamon followed them through the jungle.

-

The temple was designed like an Aztec temple. It had a large stone steps leading up to a flat roof-top that was about a half-acre large. There were gaping tunnels leading to the interior on all four sides of the pyramid. It was also two stories high.

"Wow," Becca gaped. "It's so big!"

"We'll at least be able to see for a long distance from the top," Otamamon said, after noticing that no one was around.

"I wish we'd found someone . . ." Becca sighed, but she smiled at her partner and said, "Let's go to the top!"

"Yeah!"

The two friends began to climb the stairs, heading for the top. Sukamon and Chuumon looked after them from the ground.

Upon reaching the top, Becca wiped the sweat that was building on her brow away and looked around. She gasped at the beauty of the landscape around her. It was all lush, green jungle, bursting with life and bright colors. No one could be seen through the tree canopy and thick foliage, but it was still a sight to behold.

Sighing, Becca said, "I don't think we're gonna find anyone." She turned.

There it was. Infinity Mountain. On the main island, too far away from their current location. There was a strip of sea between her and the most probable place to reunite with her friends.

"Duh!" Becca said, slapping her forehead. "I should have thought of that. I'd bet everyone's going to go to Infinity Mountain to regroup!"

"That makes sense!" Otamamon agreed excitedly. "We should get over there!"

"Hold on a minute," said a voice behind them. A familiar voice.

"Casey!" Becca and Otamamon cried happily, turning and running to give him a big hug.

"Hi there," Casey laughed. "I didn't know if I'd ever find anyone."

"Neither did I," Becca agreed. "We were just about to leave!"

"Then I'm glad I caught you," Casey said as Prairiemon clambered up behind him.

"Sukamon and Chuumon left," Prairiemon said.

"What?" Becca and Otamamon cried.

"I told them that we could look after you," Casey explained, "but they didn't want to leave you. Prairiemon convinced them."

"That's right," Prairiemon agreed with a smile.

"Okay . . ." Becca said unsurely.

"So," Casey began, "let's go see what this pyramid's hiding!"

"What?" Becca cried in alarm as Casey began climbing down. "No!"

"Hm?" Casey said, wondering what was wrong.

"Sukamon and Chuumon told me that there was a guardian."

"Okay," Casey said, not concerned at all. "Since we're not messing anything up, I guess it'll be okay."

Becca's jaw dropped as Casey turned and again began his descent. Becca tried to think of something to say that would change his mind, but she couldn't think of anything. Sighing, she followed after him with Otamamon at her heels.

"Stay close, Otamamon," she whispered.

-

The air in the dark, square tunnel of the pyramid was cool. The chill, dampness of the tunnel caressed Becca's skin, and she shivered involuntarily; more from fear of the unknown guardian than the cold.

"Look at this!" Casey exclaimed, pointing to the wall.

"What is it?" Becca asked, squinting in the dim light.

"They look like heiroglyphs," Casey replied.

"They indeed are ancient writings," a gruff voice said, causing the four companions to jump. "And they are sacred. You have entered the sacred pyramid, uninvited. Why?"

They turned. Becca stifled a shriek. All she could see of the guardian was the dark, humanoid silhouette and a single, yellow circle of an eye glaring at them.

"Who are you?" she cried.

"I am Centarumon, guardian of the pyramid. Now, who are you and why have you come here?" He stepped for them, revealing his image. He was a large, orange furred centaur. He was wearing a sort of Roman helmet, with a T-shaped opening that showed his eye. He had purple, bubble-like spots all over his body, most where his muscles would be, but also some where his joints were, and some along his arms. One of his arms was gray and skeletal-looking, and the other was a cannon of sorts.

Centarumon's eye examined the four creatures in front of him as Casey explained, "We couldn't help coming to this island, but we came to this pyramid to explore."

"That's right," Becca interjected, hoping to say something that would stay his wrath. "We wouldn't even be here is Devimon hadn't -"

"Devimon!" Centarumon exclaimed angrily. Becca jumped, fearing she'd said something wrong, but he said, "That evil has sent you here? I cannot stand the evil Devimon!"

"Hey! We're on the same page then!" Casey smiled.

"Why have you come into the pyramid?" Centarumon asked again, showing no emotion.

"We just wanted to look around," Casey replied, beginning to wonder how tempermental Centarumon was.

Centarumon stepped towards them. "You are not meant to be here." His eye looked them up and down quickly as all four took a fearful step backwards. Then, Centarumon let out a gasp.

"A Digivice!"

"Hm?" Becca said, puzzled, but then she remembered. "That's what this is called!" she said, holding up her white device, only one of seven that had fallen down to her what seemed like an eternity ago.

"Yes!" Centarumon said triumphantly, starting to get excited. "The Sacred Device! You must be the DigiDestined!"

"What are you talking about?" Becca asked, puzzled.

"What's DigiDestined?" Casey added, stumbling over the strange new word.

"The DigiDestined are the ones who posess Digivices," Centarumon said, not really answering either question directly yet.

"Still not following," Casey said.

"We're DigiDestined?" Becca asked, trying to make sure she was following.

"Yes," Centarumon replied. "There is a legend, an ancient legend, in the Digital World, that speaks of the DigiDestined."

"There is?" Prairiemon asked.

"Yes," Centarumon answered. "The legend states that the DigiDestined will be children, sent to the Digital World from another world."

As Centarumon spoke, the four listeners mouths fell open. Everything he was saying was so coincidentally true. Could it be? Could these ordinary children be spoken of in an ancient legend.

"The legend, or what I prefer to call the prophecy, says that the DigiDestined will come into our world to expel the evil. When their task is completed, they will be sent back home."

"Hey!" Casey exclaimed. "That's what we've been searching for: A way home! So all we have to do is beat Devimon and we're home free!"

"Yes, Devimon stands as the great evil in the Digital World," Centarumon agreed. "The Digivice have been sent to aid you, DigiDestined. They allow your Digimon to become stronger, as I'm sure you've already discovered."

"Yes," Otamamon answered.

"So we're like," Becca said, thinking for a moment, "the protectors of the DigiWorld?"

"That's precisely what you are," Centarumon said. "Your purpose is to dispell the evil. Then your purpose will be fulfilled and you shall be transported back to your lives."

"This is just what we've been searching for!" Casey exclaimed. "This is our ticket back home! We have to get to Devimon and defeat him. Then we can go back home!"

"That's right," Becca agreed. "Camp is over by now. Our families must be worried sick."

"Yeah," Casey muttered solemnly. He hadn't thought of that. "So what we need to do is head back to the island we were on earlier."

"File Island?" Centarumon asked.

"The one with Infinity Mountain?"

"Yes."

"Okay then, File Island," Casey said. "We need to get back to Infinity Mountain. It's in the center of File Island and it's the highest point around. That's the best place to really start a search for the others."

"I'd bet they'd think of that too," Prairiemon added hopefully.

"Yeah," Casey agreed. "So let's go."

"I shall take you to the top of the pyramid," Centarumon suggested. "There, I shall point you in the correct direction. From there on, your destiny shall guide you."

The four nodded agreement and followed Centarumon to the top of the pyramid.

Centarumon stood, staring out at the ocean. The waves rippled gently and the sun glinted off of it as it would off of glass. In the distance, File Island sat, with Infinity Mountain standing tall in the center.

"There it is," Casey breathed.

"What's that?" Becca asked. It was a whirring sound. Menacing, yet familiar -

"Centarumon! Look out!"

Centarumon jerked in surprise to Becca's scream, but it was too late. The gear dug deep into Centarumon's back. His torso slumped as an agonized moan escaped him.

Casey and Prairiemon backed away to Becca and Otamamon, putting themselves between the girls and Centarumon. "Back up, Becca," Casey directed. She did so.

"Get ready, Prairiemon," Casey muttered. Prairiemon nodded beside him, stepping forward. Casey brought up his Digivice, ready to Digivolve Prairiemon in a moment.

"Be careful, Casey!" Becca cried worriedly, pulling Otamamon into a worried hug. She brushed her fingers against her Digivice for reassurance.

Centarumon regained his posture, and turned his head slowly. His once yellow eye was now deep, glowing blood red.

"Oh, no," Casey breathed, wide-eyed. "Prairiemon, Digivol -"

"Jet Gallop!" Centarumon yelled, and in an instant, he was alongside Casey. With one swipe of his hand Casey's Digivice clattered across the stones to where Centarumon had been standing only a second before. With the next impossibly fast movement, Centarumon sent Prairiemon flying over the edge of the pyramid.

Prairiemon bounced down the steps, landing painfully on the dirt at the base of the ancient pyramid.

A nanosecond after Prairiemon was sent into the air, Casey had been roughly grabbed up into Centarumon's arms. Centarumon, firmly holding Casey helpless, turned his gaze to Becca. But it was too late for him.

"Digivolve!"

"Otamamon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Tortomon!"

The huge yellow turtle with the spiked shell had reappeared. She roared and rushed at Centarumon.

"Jet Gallop!" he yelled, leaping out of the way. His arm that ended in a cannon began to charge yellow, electric energy. "Solar Ray!" he announced, sending a ball of energy streaking for Tortomon.

It collided with Tortomon's spiked shell, blanketing Tortomon in smoke. Centarumon landed nearby and laughed haughtily, as Casey and Becca gasped in terror.

Then, from within the cloud -

"Strong Carapace!"

Enormous, glowing energy spikes erupted from the smoke, pummeling Centarumon mercilessly and dissipating the cloud.

"Yeah! Go Tortomon!" Becca cheered.

"Spinning Attack!" Tortomon cried, scrunching into a ball and rolling for Centarumon like a buzzsaw.

"Jet Gallop!" he cried, leaping out of the way just in time.

Tortomon spun to a stop, and then began spinning in the direction Centarumon had gone.

As the fight was going on, Becca had subtlely inched her way along the edge of the pyramid to the other side, and now she held in her hand -

"Casey! I have your Digivice!"

Tortomon uncurled herself, crying, "Strong Carapace." The projectiles smashed into Centarumon's legs, sending him painfully to the ground. Centarumon launched a Solar Ray attack that hit Tortomon squarely in the face. She DeDigivolved to Otamamon.

Casey fell from Centarumon's grasp, within reach but not currently in his clutches.

"Here!" Becca yelled, throwing the Digivice for all she was worth. It clattered across the large, white stones of the roof and slid to where Casey could just reach it with his fingertips.

Becca mentally slapped herself for being such a bad thrower.

Centarumon had caught on to what they were doing. He shifted his weight and reached his hand for Casey's ankle.

"Come on," Casey breathed, feeling Centarumon's fingers coming around his ankle. Time seemed to have slowed as his fingers scrabbled at the Digivice.

Then, with a mighty pull, Centarumon had pulled Casey back to him, and had even managed to hop onto his feet.

"Try that again," Centarumon gloated, but Casey turned in his arms.

"You mean this?" he yelled triumphantly, holding his Digivice up to Centarumon's face with the screen facing Centarumon.

"Yes!" Becca cried. "He got it!"

Light erupted from the screen, glorious and golden. Centarumon screamed, dropped Casey, and stumbled back, holding his eye and shuddering.

"Yeah!" Casey cried triumphantly, running back.

"Prairiemon!" Casey yelled. Prairiemon, who was pushing himself painfully up the stairs, heard his partner's call. "Digivolve!"

Even from his position close to the base of the pyramid, Prairiemon could feel the now familiar energy flow into him.

"Prairiemon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Leomon!"

The great Leomon was back, and in one mighty leap, returned to the summit of the ancient pyramid. He unsheathed his sword in the second it took him to fly to the roof, and he was in battle stance right in front of Casey in a moment. Becca was now with him, holding Otamamon gently in her arms.

"Nice to see you again, Leomon," Casey joked.

"Thanks for the power boost," Leomon replied. "Let's fry him!"

Leomon leapt at Centarumon, who'd finally regained his sight. Centarumon braced himself. Jet Gallop wouldn't work this time. Leomon was much faster than Tortomon.

"Beast Sword!" Leomon cried. The sword slashed at Centarumon, who ducked underneath the deadly blade.

"Solar Ray!" Centarumon answered, sending a yellow blast into Leomon's stomach. Leomon flew back, his padded feet skidding across the bricks.

"You will feel true power now!" Centarumon gloated, raising his cannon to the sun. "Solar Ray!" Bringing down his cannon, the DigiDestined were blinded by the light now contained in Centarumon's cannon.

There was a loud blast and Leomon was engulfed in smoke. Everything was white-washed with solar energy, and the great power sent the kids flying back.

Centarumon laughed. None had ever withstood his charged Solar Ray.

"You're going to have to do better than that," Leomon grunted painfully from within the cloud.

"It can't be!" Centarumon cried in disbelief.

"It is!" Leomon roared, leaping forward with a fiery fist. "Fist of the Beast King!"

The flame-lion that was Leomon's attack erupted from his fist, roaring across the stones to slam into Centarumon. Centarumon stopped his backwards-slide just short of the edge.

Leomon hadn't stopped. He'd come down, only to leap back into the air, his sword brought to bear again. This time, he yelled out, "Smashing Kick!" His clawed foot flew out in front of him as he hurtled towards Centarumon.

"Heat Uppercut!" Centarumon countered, side-stepping Leomon's attack and catching his stomach with a yellow, charged cannon. This time, it was charged for heat, not power.

Leomon cried out in pain as he soared backwards. He landed on his knee, gasping for breath.

"Jet Gallop!" Centarumon announced, suddenly before Leomon. Leomon flew back as Centarumon's fist collided with Leomon's face. Leomon skidded to a halt, but Centarumon was already there.

"Jet Gallop!" he cried again. This time, he grabbed Leomon by the main and drug him in a circle at incredible speed.

"Eat the dust, fool!" Centarumon crowed.

Casey felt tears welling up in his eyes. His partner was getting beaten. Badly. Painfully. There was nothing he could do to help his friend except watch. And if Leomon really was defeated, they would be next. Otamamon was already out of power.

"You - don't - have me - beaten - just yet!" Leomon grunted, still gasping for air. With an explosion of all his remaining energy, Leomon went for his last shot. If this worked, they were safe. If it didn't, they were all dead.

He twisted around, ignoring the sharp pull of his mane, and grabbed Centarumon's arm in both his hands. In the same second, he pulled himself up, swinging onto Centarumon's back. Centarumon was still galloping, and his arm was now held helplessly behind his back. Centarumon began to slow down, charging a Solar Ray to blast Leomon from his back.

"Fist of the Beast King!" Leomon roared, the words erupting from his throat as his fist erupted into flames. The fist came down hard on Centarumon's back, making him crumble awkwardly to the ground. There was a great explosion, from which Prairiemon flew and landed at Casey's feet. Casey picked him up and held him.

When the smoke cleared, Centarumon was standing on shaky legs, facing away from them.

"Centarumon?" Becca cried, fearful of whether he was free or not.

Centarumon turned to look at her, his eye back to its original yellow glow. "DigiDestined," he said. "I am so sorry. Even I cannot resist the direct power of Devimon."

"It's okay," Casey said, feeling so tired all of a sudden.

"He must be stopped," Centarumon said, his resolve and stance growing stronger with each second. "And you are the only ones who can do it." He limped to Becca and placed his arms on her shoulders, addressing her and Casey.

"You are DigiDestined. You must defeat the evil. You are our only hope."

Becca and Casey looked at each other for a moment, before nodding at Centarumon, determined to pull through.

-

Sukamon and Chuumon came back about ten minutes later, as Centarumon was still apologizing. They brought more fruit with them, worried about Becca's hunger now that the sun was beginning to go down.

The seven ate their fill, as Sukamon and Chuumon were delighted to provide for Becca. After their meal, they walked to the coast.

"There is Infinity Mountain," Centarumon said, gazing at the focal point of the lush island called File. "There, you will find the way to fulfill your destiny."

"We'll ride Tortomon back to File," Becca suggested. Casey and Prairiemon nodded agreement.

"Digivolve!" Becca cried, holding out her Digivice.

"Otamamon! Digivolve to . . ."  
" . . . Tortomon!"

The great yellow turtle waddled into the shallow surf. "Hop on."

Casey and Prairiemon climbed up on the base of Tortomon's neck, resting their backs on her foremost spikes.

Becca walked to Sukamon and Chuumon.

"Thank you for all of your help," she said. She bent down and kissed each of them quickly on the cheek. Their faces burned red as she ran to join Casey and Prairiemon atop Tortomon.

Tortomon began swimming swiftly for File Island. Becca, Casey, and Prairiemon waved at Centarumon, Sukamon, and Chuumon.

"At this pace," Becca said after a minute, when the island had begun to fade and File had begun to loom ahead, "we'll make it to File in no time."

"Let's hope we can find the others when we get there," Casey nodded. "Then we can beat Devimon and go home!"

"Right," Becca smiled. She stood up and yelled towards File Island, "We're the DigiDestined, Devimon, and we're coming for you!"


	11. Ritual Sacrifice

Author's Note: Aah! At long last, I have updated! Jeez, that took me forever! PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE: If you read this story, review! If you don't review, I don't have fuel for my fire . . . and by that, I mean, reviews help me write more quickly! PLEASE REVIEW IF YOU READ THIS!

Aha! Since my last chapter, I have discovered something that can be great fun: Message board RPGs! Hooray! They reside on and they're a lot of fun. Hit the links in my Author Profile be sent straight there! Mine is Destinies, and the others are some that I'm a part of.

**Previously . . .**

Devimon raised both hands and the beds rose into the air, holding a child, a Digimon, and the child's clothes on each. They all let out cries of alarm.

"What are you doing?" Blake screamed as they circled in the air around the devastated mansion.

"Instead of me taking your lives from you, you have taken a slave from me," Devimon said. "So now I will take away the source of your power and, mark my words, you will die!"

"Leave us alone!" Becca wailed.

"You've overcome all challenges you've faced thus far," Devimon said. "But how will you fare when you're all alone? Since you gain so much strength from your friends, allow me to send you by yourselves all over the Digital world!"

-

**CHAPTER ELEVEN**

**Ritual Sacrifice**

He was awoken by the sound of waves gently lapping against something. He felt himself on an uneven surface, and, trying to steady himself, slipped off the surface and felt his shoe plunge into water.

"DemiDevimon?" Cameron said.

"Here," DemiDevimon muttered. Cameron saw he was responding through a light sleep.

"DemiDevimon," Cameron said again, shaking his small purple Digimon awake.

"Huh?" DemiDevimon said, opening his eyes and shaking himself awake. "What is it?"

"Look around."

"Ah!" DemiDevimon cried, seeing their surroundings.

The two were atop the bed, which was floating, lop-sided, in the middle of a dark ocean. Dusk was already fast approaching, and a blanket of mist covered the sea.

"This is bad," DemiDevimon said.

"To put it lightly," Cameron agreed.

Cameron had noticed that they were floating in a certain direction, and as he and his Digimon partner were looking intently for an answer to their problems, a dark island materialized in the mist before them. Though the sight of land brought the hope of salvation, menace seemed to radiate from the island.

"Land!" DemiDevimon cried happily, impervious to the foreboding Cameron sensed. "We're safe!"

"Yeah," Cameron said uneasily. "Yeah, safe."

The bed floated slowly towards the island, and soon, Cameron and DemiDevimon were climbing off the bed and onto the gray shore.

Cameron shivered involuntarily, looking at the beach and tropical forest. Everything here was dark and gray, and Cameron had a sneaking suspiscion that it wasn't because it was getting late.

"Let's look around," DemiDevimon suggested.

"Yeah," Cameron agreed. "Maybe someone else landed on this island, too."

They headed off into the forest, DemiDevimon perched comfortably on Cameron's shoulder.

As they walked, the tree canopy grew thicker and everything became darker. This fact was multiplied by the fact that the sun had almost set by now.

"It's getting dark," Cameron said. "And late."

"It's okay though," DemiDevimon said, oblivious to Cameron's nervous tone. "Since we just woke up, we shouldn't need to sleep for a while. We'll be fine."

Cameron sighed, rolling his eyes. DemiDevimon was not good at picking up on subtleties.

They continued walking, Cameron's uneasiness growing, and DemiDevimon's misinterpretation continuing. Soon, they could hear someone beating a drum.

"Wonder what that is," Cameron whispered, trying to approach the source of the noise quietly. DemiDevimon finally took the hint and remained silent.

Cameron crept through the brush, seeing orange light ahead. Slinking through the forest, he came to a wall and, peeping around, was surprised by the sight.

Someone was indeed banging the drums in rhythm, and many people were dancing robotically around in a circle, wearing colored masks.

"Looks like a Halloween party or something," Cameron muttered.

"Halloween?" DemiDevimon asked cluelessly.

"It's a holiday," Cameron explained hastily and quietly.

DemiDevimon and Cameron both jumped slightly at a rustling sound behind them. Turning, they both breathed a sigh of relief. Meggy was pushing through the bush towards them, Rabbitmon following closely.

"Meggy!" Cameron breathed happily, yet still quietly.

"Hey, Cameron!" Meggy said. "We saw you about a minute ago and we've been trying to catch up without making too much noise."

"What do you think they're doing?" Cameron asked.

"Dancing," DemiDevimon commented densely.

"Maybe it's some kind of ritual?" Meggy suggested.

"Maybe," Cameron replied. "Next question: Who are they?"

"We could always ask," Meggy suggested.

"But we need to make sure we're safe," Rabbitmon interjected. "And by that, I mean we need to be able to Digivolve."

"Okay, so we need to find some food," Meggy asserted.

"Right," Rabbitmon agreed.

"Let's do it, then," Cameron said, and the four of them crept away.

DemiDevimon searched the trees, and it took only minutes to find food far enough away from the dancing Digimon. DemiDevimon knocked yellow, pear-shaped fruit down from the tree branches they grew into the waiting arms of Cameron, who set them into four piles of equal portions. After they had plenty of fruit, Cameron called DemiDevimon down and they began eating in a circle.

"So where did you land?" Meggy inquired.

"In the ocean," Cameron replied.

"Seriously?" Meggy asked, disbelieving.

"Yep," DemiDevimon piped up.

"I was freaked out for a minute when I woke up," Cameron explained. "It was really foggy and I couldn't see anything."

"So how did you make it here?"

"We just kind of floated here," Cameron replied. "But I don't like this place."

"Neither do I," Meggy agreed, looking around nervously and shivering. "It gives me the creeps."

"But it's okay," Rabbitmon put in through a mouthful of fruit. "I'm here to protect you."

"Me too," DemiDevimon assured her.

Meggy was still disquieted. "I just don't like this place. It's really menacing."

"You can say that again," Cameron responded.

"Why?" DemiDevimon wondered.

"It's an expression," Cameron explained.

"Oh," DemiDevimon said, pretending to understand.

"What do we do now?" Cameron asked, seeing that the meal was over.

"We find everyone else," Meggy said automatically.

"How do we do that?" Rabbitmon asked.

"I was thinking we should head back to Infinity Mountain," Cameron explained. "It's the highest point on the island and it's in the center. I'd bet the others are going there too."

"Good idea," Meggy commented.

"But what about the dancers?" DemiDevimon asked.

"What about them?" Cameron responded.

"Are we gonna talk to them?"

"I don't see why we should," Meggy replied this time.

"Maybe they know something about the others," DemiDevimon suggested.

"That's true," Cameron said.

"It's worth a try," Meggy shrugged.

"Alright then," Rabbitmon said. "Let's go."

"Let's be careful about it, though," Cameron directed, as Meggy and Rabbitmon began moving swiftly and silently through the dark forest.

Cameron followed behind with DemiDevimon on his shoulder. He noted how quickly and confidently Meggy and Rabbitmon moved. They weren't afraid about moving ahead towards the possible danger of the dancing people.

"Do you think this is a good idea?" Cameron whispered to DemiDevimon, voicing his foreboding.

"Yeah," DemiDevimon reassured him.

Cameron was still unsettled. If there was one thing he'd learned during his short time in the Digital World, it was that anything was possible and nothing was predictable. He wasn't going to let his guard down.

"There they are," Meggy whispered back, as the orange light became visible.

"Here we go," Cameron muttered to himself.

They peeked their heads around the bit of wall they'd been hiding behind earlier, and saw that the dancers were still there. They were still dancing, and from the looks of things, still dancing the same dance.

"What are they doing?" Meggy wondered aloud.

"It looks like some kind of ceremony, almost," Cameron observed.

"Oh, it is," a voice said behind him.

They all jumped and whipped around. One of the people was there, standing stiffly, wearing one of the masks with big eyes, wide smiling mouths, and many colors.

"You scared me," Meggy admitted, patting her heart.

The man answered with silence, the wide, unnatural smile of the mask making the four a bit edgy.

"So, what exactly is it for?" Cameron asked.

"Come and find out," the man replied strangely. He walked out from behind the wall and the two followed with their Digimon.

"Guests?" one of the dancers said, stopping to stare at the newcomers. The other dancers noticed and stopped too, staring at the four and the dancer leading them in.

They continued to follow, amidst the stares of all the dancers, the one who'd come to them until they got to the middle of the circle.

"So, what exactly is all this for?" Meggy reiterated Cameron's question from before.

The man's head lowered slightly, the mask's large smile and wide eyes unchanging. Cameron noticed that everyone else was back in a perfect circle, all with lowered heads.

"Hello?" Rabbitmon asked tenatively.

All at once, every head shot up, and every dancer rushed at the four in the middle of the circle. There was the sound of cloth ripping all around, and the masks and robes fell to the dirt. Meggy let out a scream and Cameron ran to wrap her in his arms protectively. DemiDevimon and Rabbitmon began firing attacks into the crush of monsters that had come from the dancers.

They were like sheets themselves, but with some unseeable body inside. They were small, probably only three and a half feet tall, but they flew swiftly. There were no legs or visible hands, and the cloth at the hands and abdomen was tattered and ripped. There were big, black, empty eyeholes with little circles of dull yellow light that served as soulless eyes. They had big gaping mouths with large, red, lolling tongues and rows of sharp teeth.

"They're Bakemon!" DemiDevimon cried before being tackled mercilessly by four of the monsters.

Rabbitmon was being swarmed, a large number forming a suffocating dog-pile on top of her.

"Rabbitmon!" Meggy wailed as Cameron squeezed her tightly, pulling her to the dirt with him to try and avoid the ghost-like Digimon.

The Bakemon swarmed everywhere, pulling the two children apart and lifting them into the air. They both screamed as the Bakemon carried them into the air.

"DemiDevimon!" Cameron cried as the Bakemon lifted his limp form into the air. He noticed Rabbitmon was being carried up as well.

Meggy cried out, and Cameron jerked around to see her slump in the arms of her captors, unconcious. He was about to cry out when he felt a sharp pain on the back of his head -

-

Groaning, Cameron awoke with his arms and legs spread out. He was lying on cold, hard stone. He struggled, trying to lift his arms up, but they were bound, and he found immediately after that his legs were as well.

Cameron's vision cleared from its blurry state, and he turned his head, wincing at the pain on the back of his head. He found that Meggy was lying next to him, her hands and legs spread and bound like Cameron's. She was unconcious.

"Meggy?" Cameron whispered while taking in his surroundings.

They were in an ornate building that reminded Cameron of a church. There were stained-glass windows high up near the rafters that supported the lofty ceiling. The still, musty air was cool and the room was dark. The flickering of what seemed to be fire was coming from somewhere beyond Cameron's sight. It was very faint, and Cameron assumed it was from candles.

Cameron decided to see if his partner was nearby. "DemiDevimon?" he called tenatively.

A Bakemon loomed in his sight, his gaping, toothed mouth emitting a cackle. "Your Digimon friends have been taken care of."

Cameron's eyes widened. "No! What did you do to my DemiDevimon!" He screamed as he began pulling at the restraints.

"You won't have to worry about that for very long," Bakemon replied. "You won't _exist _for much longer!" Another menacing cackle.

"What?" Cameron cried desperately, a trickle of sweat tracing its way down his face and tickling his cheek. "What do you mean?"

Meggy groaned from beside him, looking around. "Cameron?"

"I mean you're here to bring power to the Bakemon!" Bakemon replied.

"Huh?" Meggy said, trying to shake off the lingering dizziness from her unconsiousness.

"How do you expect us to do that?" Cameron challenged. "We'll never work with you!"

"I don't expect you to work with us!" Bakemon chuckled. "I expect you to work _for _us!"

"Work for you?" Meggy mumbled, catching onto what was going on.

"We won't work for you!" Cameron refused valiantly.

"You don't have a choice!" Bakemon said.

"Are they trying to use mind control or something?" Meggy whispered to Cameron, frightened.

"No, girly, you got it all wrong!" Bakemon said, his voice dripping with malice. "Your lives are going to give us Bakemon power! We performed the Ritual earlier, when you showed up. Now you're going to be our Ritual Sacrifice!"

Meggy gasped, her breath catching in her throat. Cameron paled, cold sweat pouring down his face now and making his clothes stick to him.

Bakemon laughed and floated off to join his companions, who were apparently preparing something beyond Cameron and Meggy's sight.

"What are we going to do?" Meggy cried desperately.

"I don't know," Cameron said, his thoughts turning back to the fate of their Digimon. "Just give me some time to think."

-

"Wake up, you stupid bat!" Rabbitmon screamed, giving the unconsious form of DemiDevimon another hard shove.

"Five more minutes," the Digimon mumbled unconsiously, turning in his sleep.

"Ugh!" Rabbitmon sighed.

She'd awoken to find herself in a kind of food closet. There was a tiny, high up window with bars over it. The entire room was cobblestone and cold, and there was moss growing in between the stones now. There were shelves full of jars all around the room. The large wooden door was locked, and Rabbitmon's super-sensitive ears had told her that a Bakemon was guarding it.

_I can break out of here with my attack_, Rabbitmon thought to herself, _but the Bakemon are Champion Level Digimon and I don't think I can beat them without DemiDevimon's help_.

"DemiDevimon!" Rabbitmon called again. "You dolt! Wake up!"

-

Cameron was still trying to figure things out when his and Meggy's stone tablets began to move. They lifted off the pedestals they'd been sitting on and began to rotate one hundred eighty degrees.

"What's happening?" Meggy cried frantically, and despite Cameron's calm silence, he was thinking the same thing.

After being turned arond, the tablets began to go vertical, allowing Cameron and Meggy to see what was happening.

There were candles everywhere, and Bakemon swarming all over. There was stylized stained-glass with a picture of Jesus on the cross with a halo on his head, like the kind in Catholic church renditions. In front of the glass was what looked to Cameron like a stone coffin.

"Well this is ironic," Cameron said, looking at the picture of Jesus and then at the devilish ghost Digimon and the coffin he assumed was part of the Ritual.

"The time is now!" one of the Bakemon said. "Our time has come! Power will be ours!"

"This is what happens when you live on dark, freaky islands," Meggy joked nervously.

The tablets began floating slowly towards the Bakemon, drawing out the suspense of the moment. The tablets rumbled as they made their laborious way across the room.

_This is it_, Cameron thought to himself. _We're not gonna make it! We just don't have time, and our Digimon are nowhere to be found!_

As if on cue, a single Bakemon floating back and forth in front of a thick wooden door off to the side was thrown to the far wall along with flaming remnants of the wall.

The kids and Bakemon stared, openmouthed, at the smoking remnants of the door. Meggy and Cameron's wonder changed to happiness as Rabbitmon bounded through the door, DemiDevimon flapping close behind.

"Rabbitmon!"

"DemiDevimon!"

"Rabbit Bomber!" Rabbitmon cried, shooting a red-orange fireball into the mass of Bakemon.

DemiDevimon flapped over to Meggy and Cameron and began attacking the metal harnesses preventing the kids from moving.

Bakemon flew at Rabbitmon, attacking in a swarm like they'd done before. A few Rabbit Bomber attacks flew out of the press of ghosts, and some ghosts flew out of the circle in a burst of smoke and flame, but overall the defensive attacks from Meggy's pink Digimon were prooving futile.

"Rabbitmon! Hang in there!" Meggy cried as DemiDevimon freed Cameron's right hand.

_Let's hope the food we ate earlier pays off_, Meggy thought. "Digivolve, Rabbitmon!"

Rabbitmon heard her partner's cries and felt the surge of power as Meggy's Digivice began to glow.

"Rabbitmon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Lynxmon!"

In a burst of light, the Bakemon flew back as a large flaming Digimon appeared in Rabbitmon's place.

"Yes! She Digivolved!" Meggy cheered.

"Thermal Mane!" The fire along Lynxmon's body glowed bright, travelling up to form an energy fireball in front of her mouth, from which a stream burst. Lynxmon shot the firestream around, hitting many of the Bakemon and causing them to fall to the ground in pain.

"Good job, Lynxmon!" Meggy yelled.

"Way to go!" Cameron said.

In a flash, Lynxmon was in front of the children. "Wild Nail Rush!" she announced, slashing the restraints away in a second with seven movements of her swift, flaming claws.

Meggy fell free of her restraints onto Lynxmon's back. Cameron dropped half a foot to his feet.

The fallen Bakemon pulled themselves painfully off the ground, floating to rejoin their bretheren above the coffin. The Bakemon began flying around in an erratic pattern, coming closer and closer to the center of the group. They began to press together, forming a tight ball of Champion level ghost Digimon.

"I have no idea what's going on, but this looks bad," Cameron muttered, taking a step back.

"I'm ready!" DemiDevimon said.

"Right!" Cameron smiled, pulling up his Digivice. "Digivolve."

"DemiDevimon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Vilemon!"

The child sized Digimon appeared, flapping his small wings and smiling with his sharp, crooked teeth. Vilemon rose swiftly into the air.

"Nightmare Shocker!" Vilemon cried, shooting out a yellow streak of electricity. The attack streaked into the mass of Digimon, but didn't seem to do anything.

"I think we should get out of here _right now_!" Lynxmon asserted.

"I agree," Meggy said.

Cameron nodded, jumping on Lynxmon's back behind Meggy.

"Go!" Meggy ordered as Lynxmon shot off. Vilemon flew behind, dodging a few rafters before coming to skim just above the floor.

There was a rumble, and Meggy and Cameron looked back as Lynxmon bounded to the doors of the long church aisle that would lead them to the outside.

"What's going on?" Cameron wondered aloud, staring in disbelief at the press of ghouls.

"This is very bad!" Meggy inferred.

A deep laugh boomed across the church as Vilemon's Nightmare Shocker shot past and decimated the doors leading to the outside world.

Suddenly, they were out in the chill of the air; a cold that bit at their skin and made them shiver even atop the warm, fiery Digimon, Lynxmon. The darkness had deepened so much that it felt as though the darkness itself was pressing against their skin.

"I hate this place!" Meggy muttered as Lynxmon continued towards the forest, which now seemed to be farther away than before. Cameron noted with nervousness the tombstones flanking the church.

There was a bell at the top of a tower on the roof of the lofty church building that, without visible cause, resounded dully, the chime striking across the gray earth and bouncing off the dead tree trunks.

"What's happening?" Meggy cried, more out of agitation than actual curiosity. The bell dully chimed again, its deep, sorrowful melody making Meggy shiver and her bones tingle.

"We're about to find out, I'm afraid," Cameron muttered, looking to the sky and watching the dully shining moon as it was covered over by the darkest clouds Cameron had ever seen.

There was the sound of wood snapping, and the kids looked back to see the doorframe of the church bending under the pressure of a massive Digimon pushing against it.

"Bakemon?" Meggy whispered in disbelief.

"No way," Cameron agreed quietly.

It was a Bakemon, but it was massive. This Bakemon wasn't able to even fit through the high, wide doorway of the church.

"I'd bet you money that the Bakemon combined to become the big guy!" Cameron thought aloud.

"That definitely makes sense," Meggy agreed. "I just hope he's not that strong!"

"Nightmare Shocker!" Vilemon cried, urgency and strain in his usually carefree voice.

Vilemon, who was now ahead of Lynxmon and the children, shot his yellow electric attack past Lynxmon to slam into the Bakemon, still pushing against the doorframe. There was no reflection of pain on the gruesome Digimon's face, but a booming roar of anger erupted from his gaping mouth.

"Go faster, Lynxmon!" Meggy urged desperately as the doorframe snapped and the enormous Bakemon literally ripped the front of the church off in his push to catch the kids. The stones crumbled and fell in a shower of dust as Bakemon shot towards the kids at terrifying, unbelievable speed.

"Run!" Cameron cried as Lynxmon hit the forest and trees began rushing past.

Vilemon dodged around trees, leading Lynxmon through in what had quickly become a horrifying high speed chase on this haunted island.

There was a sound of earth being ripped and churned and wood being broken as the massive Bakemon hit the forest at incredible speed. His power and anger fueled him, and he chased after the kids with an unstoppable determination and unbreakable focus. He didn't even bother to dodge around the trees; he simply barreled into them, either snapping them like toothpicks or uprooting them.

"He can't be stopped!" Cameron stated, feeling the hope draining out of him.

"How are we gonna beat this thing?" Meggy said, feeling hopeless as well but trying to counter-balance Cameron's statement.

Vilemon began beating his wings harder, speeding up ahead.

"Thermal Mane!" Lynxmon cried, firing another stream of fire at a line of trees in front of her.

She leapt over her own fire line as it roared to life, creating a literal firewall of protection.

"Keep going, Vilemon!" Cameron encouraged, heartened by the wall of fire.

And, suddenly, he saw Vilemon hovering up ahead, and the treeline rushed past, and they were on the shore.

"Oh, gosh, no more trees!" Meggy wailed, as Lynxmon skidded to a halt on the gray beach.

Cameron leapt off Lynxmon's back, Meggy following behind, and ran towards the sea. He could just barely see Infinity Mountain rising commandingly into the air above the grey mist and the black ocean.

There was an explosion of snaps and rips as the massive Bakemon shot out of the forest, fire streaming from his bedsheet-like body and flaming wood chips falling to the gray sand of the beach.

"Well," Cameron sighed, "it's been fun."

"Crap," Meggy snapped, her eyes darting around, looking for a way out.

"Thermal Mane!"

"Nightmare Shocker!"

The two attacks launched towards the Bakemon.

"Evil Charm!" he boomed. The attacks froze in midair, glowed with black energy, and dissipated.

"No!" Meggy screamed, stomping her foot in the sand.

"Shoot! We can't even hit this guy!" Cameron growled.

"Volcanic Strike!"

"Scissor Claw!"

Two energy slashes and a great fireball shot from the side, catching Bakemon off guard and knocking him into the forest. He fell to the ground, pushing himself back up slowly and painfully.

Kuwagamon flew over to land next to Cameron, Meggy, Lynxmon, and Vilemon. Adam leapt off his back as Blake rode in on Monochromon's back.

"Zombie Claw!" Bakemon announced, two black, clawed hands firing out of his arms and heading to attack. They hit Lynxmon and Kuwagamon.

"Volcanic Strike!" Monochromon attacked again. The fireball tore across the beach, headed straight for its target.

"Evil Charm!" Bakemon used his attack again, and Monochromon's fireball was no more.

That didn't stop Vilemon. "Nightmare Shocker!" he cried from his new location behind Bakemon. Bakemon was hit right in the center of his back by the sizzling electricity.

"Can't take the heat of the numbers!" Blake gloated.

"I'm so happy you guys showed up when you did!" Meggy said, giving Adam a hug.

"What're friends for?" Blake laughed, sidling up to them.

Bakemon's booming laugh resounded again, chilling the children and dampening the happiness of their reunion.

"He's still up after that?" Blake cried in disbelief.

"He got hit by three Champion attacks!" Adam agreed. "He should not have survived!"

"Evil Charm!" A dark sphere emitted from Bakemon, hitting all four Champion Digimon and knocking them to the ground.

"Oh, no!" Cameron cried, putting his hands up to protect himself from the dark wave that was headed for him and his friends.

"He's just too strong!" Meggy screamed.

The second before the Evil Charm attack hit the kids, they were surrounded by light. The attack was gone, and all four of them pulled their Digivices up to look at them. The golden light was emitting from them, stopping Bakemon's attack.

The four Champion Digimon ran to get between Bakemon and the kids, their strength returning with the golden light of the Digivices.

"Meggy's right!" Lynxmon cried. "Bakemon is too strong!"

Blake's eyes widened, and he looked a little closer at his Digivice.

"Guys!" he said. "Remember when Leomon came after me? My Digivice released him from Devimon's control! And just now our Digivices stopped that attack!"

"So," Cameron said, understanding where Blake was going with this, "if we use our Digivices, I'd bet we can weaken Bakemon!"

"Right!" Blake smiled.

"Great idea!" Vilemon said.

"Go get him!" Monochromon roared.

The kids ran forward, backed by their Digimon, holding their glowing Digivices ahead of them.

Bakemon's eyes widened, and a look of uncertainty crossed his face. He was made of all the darkness and hatred in the hearts of the Bakemon that had combined to become him, and this light pierced him to his soul.

There was a booming roar of indignation from Bakemon before he begin to shrink. His arms went up to cover his eyes, but still he screeched in pain.

"Wipe him out!" Blake cried.

"Volcanic Strike!"

"Nightmare Shocker!"

"Thermal Mane!"

"Scissor Claw!"

Four attacks shot across the beach, slamming into Bakemon. With an unholy roar, Bakemon exploded.

The kids let out sighs of relief as the smoke cleared.

"We did it!" Meggy cheered.

"Thanks to some intuitive thinking," Cameron said, smiling at Blake.

"What can I say?" Blake laughed with fake conceit.

"Mister modest," Adam laughed, rolling his eyes.

"So what were you planning on doing next?" Blake asked, addressing his question to Cameron and Meggy.

"We were gonna head to Infinity Mountain to look for you and the others," Meggy said.

"Wow," Blake said. "That's exactly what we were going to do."

"So let's go," Adam said. "Kuwagamon can fly us back to File Island. Then, hopefully, we can find Casey, Becca, and Rainey."

"Right," Kuwagamon agreed, stooping down to allow the others to climb on his back.

Monochromon, Lynxmon, and Vilemon DeDigivolved to Gizamon, Rabbitmon, and DemiDevimon. They, along with all their partners, climbed onto Kuwagamon's back. With a buzz of his wings, he lifted from the haunted isle and began to head through the darkness and fog towards File Island.

"We'll find the others," Blake said. "And then, we're going after Devimon!"


	12. Primary Village

Author's Notes: I've been enjoying reading a lot of stories on this site, but, unfortunately, as my readers can tell, it really stops me from updating diligently. It's finally here, so enjoy. Perhaps the next chapter will be produced faster, but there are no guarantees in this business (and I've got vacation in Florida this weekend, so I'll be pre-occupied).

Reviews . . . oh, that's right . . . I DON'T GET ANY! I'm a little bitter about this, but my ray of hope is the ever-present UKHoneyB. Thank goodness for UK, or I'd just be depressed . . .

**

* * *

**

**Previously . . .**

Devimon raised both hands and the beds rose into the air, holding a child, a Digimon, and the child's clothes on each. They all let out cries of alarm.

"What are you doing?" Blake screamed as they circled in the air around the devastated mansion.

"Instead of me taking your lives from you, you have taken a slave from me," Devimon said. "So now I will take away the source of your power and, mark my words, you will die!"

"Leave us alone!" Becca wailed.

"You've overcome all challenges you've faced thus far," Devimon said. "But how will you fare when you're all alone? Since you gain so much strength from your friends, allow me to send you by yourselves all over the Digital world!"

* * *

**CHAPTER TWELVE**

**Primary Village**

"Don't tell me you're afraid of the dark," Lopmon chuckled as the fire crackled beside him and his partner.

"I'm not!" Rainey said defensively, looking around at the dark, silent forest.

After a rude awakening early in the morning, Rainey and Lopmon had travelled around the island all day, searching for everyone else. Although the search had been unsuccessful, Rainey and Lopmon had come to the conclusion that they were still on File Island.

Rainey settled down on the dirt and Lopmon threw some dirt on the fire, putting it out.

As darkness settled on the campsite, Lopmon snuggled close against Rainey.

There was a chirp from far off. "Rainey?" Lopmon asked, his voice full of doubt. "Did you hear that?"

"It's nothing," Rainey mumbled, already half asleep. "Come on, Lopmon. Don't tell me you're afraid of the dark."

"Not funny," Lopmon said. He still wriggled a little tighter to Rainey - just in case.

* * *

"How unexpected," Devimon muttered, slightly angrily. "It appears these children are more versatile than I first believed. Four of them have reunited, and another pair are together elsewhere, and all of them are headed back to File Island."

He smiled. "All except the youngest, who's already here."

Devimon turned to acknowledge the entrance of his servants, Leomon and Ogremon. "I suppose it's time to stop sending Gears to do a truly evil Digimon's job."

"If you want something done right, you've got to do it yourself," Ogremon quoted the famous phrase. "And I'm here at your bidding, Master." He fell to his knee, bowing.

"As am I," Leomon rumbled, following Ogremon with a bow of his own. "I shall valiantly serve you."

"Of course," Devimon said. "Yes, it's time for us to kill the children once and for all."

"My service is yours," Leomon reiterated.

Devimon smiled. "It would suffice to send you two to do it. We'll start with the youngest."

Leomon chuckled darkly. "Your wish is my command."

"Good. He's headed for Primary Village. Go. Kill him and his Digimon."

Leomon stood, exiting his master's prescence with Ogremon close behind.

* * *

"Lopmon, you sure do complain a lot," Rainey laughed at his rabbit-like Digimon.

"I'm just trying to keep a conversation going," Lopmon laughed.

"Well, there's nothing to talk about," Rainey said, chuckling. "If we could find the others, then you can talk to somebody."

Lopmon chuckled, hovering up to come to rest on Rainey's head.

"Who said you could ride up there?" Rainey said as he walked off through the forest.

"I did!"

"That doesn't count!"

* * *

"You'd think we would've found someone by now," Rainey sighed tiredly, seeing the sun high in the sky. "It's time to eat."

"See?" Lopmon drawled. "I'm not the _only _one who complains!"

Rainey gave his Digimon a playful, light punch on the shoulder.

"Who are you?" a voice asked gruffly from the bushes ahead of the two, making them jump.

"Hello?" Rainey called tenatively as Lopmon placed himself between his partner and the speaker.

"Why have you come this way?" the voice asked.

"Who are you?" Rainey asked.

A small red creature crawled out of the bushes in front of them. It was a quadriped and had a body shape like Gizamon, or maybe Rabbitmon. It's body was covered in what was predominantly red fur, but some of that fur was purple. It had long rabbit ears with purple tips. Its eyes were large and blue and its mouth was wide. At the end of its body it had nine tails, all resembling his rabbit ears, that were red with purple tips.

"My name is Elecmon. I protect Primary Village."

"Primary Village?" Rainey asked.

"I've heard of that, but I've never been there," Lopmon said.

"Yes," Elecmon said. "But, I need to know why you've come."

Lopmon pouted, but Rainey explained, "We were sent here by Devimon -"

"Devimon?" Elecmon screamed, outraged.

"I meant -" Rainey began, realizing how it had sounded.

"I will _never _let Devimon's servants into Primary Village!" Elecmon cried. "Super Thunder Strike!" In a flash of yellow electricity outlined in purple, Elecmon launched a lightning bolt from his back that slammed painfully into the unsuspecting Lopmon.

Lopmon was thrown back, slamming hard into a tree.

"Wait!" Rainey cried futilly.

"Blazing Fire!" Lopmon cried, an orange energy attack flying to hit Elecmon in the face, blanketing him in fire and smoke.

"You've done it now, dark intruders!" Elecmon growled.

"You don't understand!" Rainey wailed uselessly.

"Tiny Twister!" Lopmon announced, fanning out his large ears and flapping them, sending a gale-force wind streaking towards Elecmon.

"Super Thunder Strike!" Elecmon roared, firing a haphazardly-aimed attack before being bowled over by the wind.

Despite the fact that the fight shouldn't even be happening, Rainey couldn't help but feel proud of his little partner.

Lopmon flew over to land on Elecmon, who was struggling to get back up. "Don't even think about it!" Lopmon said menacingly.

Rainey ran over to kneel in front of Elecmon, ignoring the warning look from his partner Digimon.

"Elecmon, you've got us all wrong," he explained calmly. "We didn't come here because we work for Devimon. We came here because Devimon hates us; he wants us dead."

Elecmon remained silent, but his eyes showed that he was processing the information.

"Devimon wants you dead?" Elecmon asked slowly. "I _knew _there was something strange about you!" He was now addressing Rainey. "You're not a Digimon and I knew it! You're from another world!"

Rainey was shocked at Elecmon's very on-target guesses, but smiled and nodded. He lifted Lopmon into his arms, allowing Elecmon to rise to his feet.

"I'm sorry," Elecmon said sincerely. "I was too hasty in my judgement. I shouldn't have attacked you like that."

"Got that right!" Lopmon agreed angrily.

"Shh!" Rainey chastized his Digimon. "Thanks, Elecmon. That's all right." Lopmon shot him a look of surprise.

"Allow me to offer you the hospitality of Primary Village," Elecmon continued.

Rainey set Lopmon down. "What exactly _is _Primary Village?"

Elecmon smiled, a fitting expression for his wide-mouthed face. "Come with me and I'll show you."  
The little red Digimon hopped off into the bushes from whence he came, followed by the curious companions. They walked only for a few minutes before the trees began to thin.

"Looks like we're getting close," Rainey commented to Lopmon.

"Sure are!" Elecmon commented gleefully, not seeing Lopmon sticking his tongue out at him.

In no time the end of the trees was visible. "Here we are!" Elecmon announced happily. Lopmon sulked.

"Wow!" Rainey breathed. "It's so beautiful!" Even the sultry Lopmon was amazed at the sight.

It was an enourmous field, in which was a city that looked like it was made out of children's blocks. There were big blocks with the letter "A" stacked on top of other letter blocks. They all looked a little different than normal blocks though . . .

"They're plushy!" Lopmon observed.

"Kinda like stuffed animals!" Rainey laughed.

Elecmon smiled. "Actually, probably more like pillows. The streets are even paved with cushy material. It feels like a quilt!"

"This place is incredible!" Rainey smiled. Never in his wildest dreams would he have thought up some place like this. It was the perfect little kid's paradise and, despite Rainey's age, he was totally excited to be here.

"This isn't even the best part," Elecmon said. He felt tears well up in his eyes; he loved his work, and he was about to see it - them - again.

"Really?" Rainey and Lopmon - Lopmon with a very small amount of anger - asked eagerly.

"Nope," Elecmon said, as Lopmon indignantly realised that Elecmon was only addressing Rainey. "The reason Primary Village exists is just over this little slope!"

As they crested the slightly raised ground, Rainey and Lopmon stared in breathless amazement at the sight they beheld.

In a continuation of the gigantic grassy plain, hundreds - maybe even thousands - of brown wicker objects sat on the lush, soft green grass.

"Cribs?"Rainey asked.

"Exactly!" Elecmon replied. "And each crib is either filled by an adorable baby Digimon, or holds a DigiEgg waiting to hatch!"

"Wow!" Rainey exclaimed. "So this is where Digimon are born! Lopmon, do you remember being born here?"

Lopmon turned to look at his partner but, noticing that Elecmon was also looking, simply said a gruff "No" and turned away. Stupid Elecmon!

"Oh well," Rainey muttered as Elecmon perked up.

"Doesn't matter! Lots of Digimon don't really remember being here." He began to trot off towards the crib field with Rainey following eagerly behind. Lopmon stomped a few yards behind the two, still in a hot temper about the unwarranted battle from earlier.

"See," Elecmon continued, "it doesn't matter that they remember exactly what they were doing while they were here. What matters is the love and care that I give to them! With that as a positive background, every Digimon here is ready to go out into the Digital World and become a friendly aspect of File Island!"

Rainey wanted to ask _So what happened with Devimon_, but decided not to talk about such dark matters in such a happy, carefree place.

"As you can see," Elecmon continued, pulling a cute Digimon out of its crib, "this is the perfect place for all Digimon to begin their lives!" He held the little creature out to Rainey, who took it gently into his hands. "See?"

Rainey was holding a little round ball of fluff. It was totally black and had two little round ears adorning its head. The only thing that showed the life in the unmoving creature were the cute little yellow eyes.

"Aww!" Rainey said instinctively, and even Lopmon's grudge softened a little.

"It's a Botamon!" Elecmon exclaimed. "It may evolve into any number of In-Training Level Digimon!"

As if on cue, the Botamon said, "Bo! Bo!".

"Aww!" Rainey smiled, waggling his finger in front of Botamon's face and giving it a loving pat on the head.

Botamon wriggled slightly, his eyes squinting a little. "Ch!" it sneezed.

Rainey's eyes bulged. It was _so _cute!

"Hm!" Lopmon pouted, forcing an angry face. "I don't see anything so spectacular about it."

"What did you say?" Elecmon growled, stepping forward menacingly.

"Lopmon!" Rainey chastise him, hoping he wasn't hurting the little Botamon's ears.

"I'm just saying, I've seen some pretty special things and this is just dull."

"You're really pushing me!" Elecmon said, holding himself back from leaping at Lopmon.

"What's up, Lopmon?" Rainey asked angrily, turning Botamon away from him and snuggling closer.

"I was just saying, if you want to see something better than _babies_, we could do that." Lopmon's unreasonable anger and Elecmon's earlier attack had finally broiled over, and Lopmon was winding up for the final blow.

"Just stop there," Elecmon threatened. "I've held myself back and if you just stop there we won't have a problem." Elecmon had more skillfully hidden his resentment for Lopmon, yet he still wanted to fight the stupid little rabbit.

Lopmon smiled, a sinister look behind the innocent face. "All I'm saying, Rainey, is that we could go see something better. Like," he drawled, an evil glint in his eye, "Ogremon drooling into a cup -"

Lopmon couldn't have said more if he'd tried. Elecmon had tackled him and was now mercilessly wrestling with him, scratching and biting. Lopmon was certainly participating in the contest of strength, not only using his nails and teeth but also slapping Elecmon with his big, fanned-out ears.

They rolled around, grunting, punching and scratching and biting and slapping each other, trying to get the other to submit.

"Tiny Twister!" Lopmon finally said, fanning out his ears in one swift motion that created a push of air, causing both Digimon to fly back from one another.

The Botamon in Rainey's arms sniffled and began to cry. "Stop it, you two!" he ordered.

"Super Thunder Strike!"

"Blazing Fire!"

The streak of thunder and ball of hot energy flew at each other, slamming together in an explosion that both Digimon were already on a collision course for. Before the smoke could even clear, the two Digimon smashed into each other with a dull thud, dropping to the ground and continuing to skid across the grass in the direction their momentum was taking them.

"Elecmon, stop!" Rainey cried as Botamon wailed in his arms. "Lopmon, quit it! You're acting like a jerk!"

"Blazing Fire!" Lopmon announced, swooping over Elecmon's head and launching the attack to blast on Elecmon's head.

"S-Thunder Smack!" Elecmon roared, spinning around with a glowing, electric paw and slapping the retreating Lopmon, sending him spinning to land painfully back to the grass.

"Lopmon!" Rainey cried, anger and worry in his voice.

Lopmon was out cold, and before Elecmon could even smile at his victory, his energy ran out and he, too, fell to the ground.

"Oh, great!" Rainey moaned. "A double K.O."

Botamon's sobs were slightly quieted by the resuming silence, but, to Rainey's horror, another cry met his ears.

And another.

And another.

The babies were awake.

* * *

Elecmon awoke to a mortifying sound: His babies were all crying.

He leapt to his feet - and stopped.

He was in a dark, cool lean-to, and, for a moment, he didn't know where he was or where his village - and his babies - had gone. Then he realised it was just a lean-to and that he was only a little dizzy.

Walking out from beneath the shelter and squinting in the bright sunlight, Elecmon saw a boy running through his cribs, obviously exhausted and surrounded by crying babies.

"My babies!" Elecmon cried in despair. He had sworn his life to protecting the babies and making sure they were cared for and happy. Now they were all crying at once.

"Elecmon!" the boy cried, his voice one thousand percent full of relief.

Elecmon's dizziness was still plaguing him, and it took him a second to remember the boys name. "Rainey!" he said, sprinting towards the child's location. "I'm coming!"

"Thank goodness!" Rainey breathed to himself. For about the past hour, he'd been running from crib to crib, cuddling and cooing and doing everything in his power to try and stop the crying of the baby Digimon. They were hungry and some had done their business and they were all wondering what had happened to Elecmon.

"What happened?" Elecmon panted as he ran up to Rainey, grabbing the baby Digimon from the boy's arms and cuddling it closely. The baby's crying quieted as it recognised its father-figure.

Rainey sighed as he sat tiredly on the lush grass. "When you and Lopmon fought, you both knocked the other out. Just about the time the fight ended, all the babies woke up. I've been running around trying to cuddle them and get them to stop crying, but they just won't quiet down."

"What about food?" Elecmon asked worriedly. "You fed them, didn't you?"

Rainey looked in disbelief at Elecmon, fearing the Digimon's response to the truth. "Well . . . no -"

"What!" Elecmon roared. Rainey cringed at the harsh outburst, but Elecmon was much less concerned about Rainey as he was about his babies. "Well, they need food now. There's a river nearby. Go and catch some fish!"

"You gotta be kidding!" Rainey said, looking at the hundred or so cribs and wondering how he could catch enough fish to feed all of them.

"Uh . . . " Lopmon muttered, groaning as he stumbled towards the two and rubbed his eyes sleepily. "What happened?"

Rainey smirked. "Well well, Lopmon. We've got a job for you!"

"Huh?" Lopmon asked, looking fearfully at the two.

Rainey's smirk had an evil little hint to it. "Time to pay for the trouble you caused with Elecmon."

* * *

"Rainey, do we really have to do all this work?" Lopmon complained, hoisting a giant fish onto his back and sagging under the weight.

"You're the one who attacked Elecmon like that and prevented him from helping out with the babies. He could've been doing this like normal, but now that all the babies are in an uproar he's busy. And it's your fault."

Lopmon sighed dejectedly. "I didn't mean to."

Rainey smiled faintly. "Then what did you mean to do?"

"I just -" Lopmon defended, trying to think about what he was saying, but not having much success. "I just wanted to show him that he would pay for treating us bad like he did!"

"Do you think you taught him a lesson?" Rainey asked quietly.

Lopmon's face fell. "No," he whispered. "I'm sorry. I don't even know why I was so angry about it. I guess he just picked a nerve and I didn't let it go."

Rainey nodded, hoisting a large fish into his own arms with a great deal of difficulty. "I understand. All you have to do is apologise to Elecmon."

Lopmon nodded, looking back at the river from which they got their fish. Then he turned and began trudging slowly back towards Primary Village, a short ways through the trees.

* * *

Elecmon sighed with relief when he saw the boy and his Lopmon returning, carrying two large, plump, heavy-looking fish.

"Just set them down over here!" he yelled to them, waving.

The two friends trudged tiredly up to Elecmon, thankfully dropping the fish on the ground.

"Super Thunder Shock!" Elecmon cried, zapping the fish and instantly cooking them. The luscious smell rose with the steam that was coming from the fish.

"Wow!" Rainey said.

"That smells good!" Lopmon said, his eyes a little glazed over.

"Hey," Rainey said to Lopmon. "Didn't you have something to say to Elecmon?"

"Oh, yeah," Lopmon muttered, shuffling his feet and staring intently at the ground near his feet. "I'm - I'm sorry."

"Apology accepted!" Elecmon said cheerfully, seemingly unphased by Lopmon's apology. Baby Digimon began to crowd around the fish, the alluring smell bringing the entire village to that spot. "These babies are hungry. Go get two more fish!"

"What!" Rainey and Lopmon cried in disbelief.

"Go get more fish," Elecmon repeated, giving them a strange look, as if to say _What was so hard to understand about that?_

Sighing dejectedly, the two trudged off, heads down, wishing more than anything to take a seat.

* * *

Rainey sighed with content. His arms were aching and he was exhausted, but lying on the soft, cushiony grass of Primary Village felt like the best of beds.

"Well, Lopmon," he said, spreading his arms and legs wide and savoring the sweet relaxation time Elecmon had finally granted them after their third fishload. "It's been some day."

"Yep," Lopmon agreed, closing his eyes and interlocking his fingers, resting his hands on his tummy.

They were on a sloping hill of luscious green grass. Rainey was sprawled out lazily and Lopmon was lying serenely with the top of his head facing towards the top of Rainey's.

"Sure haven't ever heard of anyone baby-sitting like that before!" Rainey joked lightly.

Lopmon chuckled softly. "In a way, though, it's been a fun day."

"A lot of work," Rainey said, "but it was worth it, I think."

"Definitely," Lopmon agreed. "Sorry again for what I did today. I should've stopped when you said stop."

Rainey smiled. "It's okay."

They lay there, staring at the clouds making their way lazily across the sky. Rainey pointed to the clouds and began to ask Lopmon what he thought they looked like.

"A rabbit," Rainey said, staring along his pointing arm with one eye open and one closed.

"No way!" Lopmon disagreed. "_I'm_ a rabbit! That's more like an Otamamon!"

"How about that one?" Rainey challenged, pointing to one nearby the rabbit/Otamamon-shaped one.

Lopmon thought for a moment, then said matter-of-factly, "Prairiemon!"

Rainey stopped, his arm lowering slowly to his side. Lopmon noticed his sudden quietness and propped himself on one elbow to look quizzically at Rainey. "What's wrong?"

Rainey sat up, his shoulders slumping and head down. Lopmon crawled around to sit in front of him.

"Sorry," Rainey said, wiping a hand across his eyes to make sure no tears fell from his now watering eyes. "It's just . . . When you mentioned Otamamon and Prairiemon, I remembered Casey and the others."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Lopmon apologised. It seemed like he found himself doing that a lot lately. "I didn't mean -"

Lopmon was cut off by a long sob that, despite his attempts to hold it back, had erupted from Rainey's throat.

"I - I'm sorry!" Rainey sobbed. "I - I - I didn't me - mean to cry but - but - but - I just miss my big brother so much!"

Lopmon's eyes filled with tears at the sight of his distressed partner. He climbed into Rainey's lap and hugged him with short, stubby arms.

"Th - Thank you, Lopmon!" Rainey continued sobbing. "I just don't know what to do! They're nowhere to be found!"

"It's okay, Rainey," Lopmon said soothingly. "I'm sure they're looking for us. And I'm pretty sure they'll find us before long."

Rainey looked up, wiping away his tears. "You're right, Lopmon. Thanks."

Lopmon smiled, hopping lightly off his partner's lap and setting down at Rainey's feet. "We could even stay here if you want," Lopmon suggested helpfully.

"I'm sorry," a deep, growling, familiar voice said from behind the two, "but that won't be a possibility for you."

Rainey and Lopmon gasped in horror, whipping around to see Devimon's servant, Leomon, standing before them.

Rainey shot to his feet and Lopmon automatically positioned himself in between Leomon and Rainey.

"Hey!" Elecmon cried, galloping up to Lopmon and Rainey and giving Leomon a strange look. "What are you doing here, Leomon?"

"The children," Leomon growled lowly, drawing his sword slowly and ominously. "I am looking for the children. Give me the boy."

"No way!" Lopmon yelled. "There's no way I'll let you lay a finger on my friend!"

"Leomon?" Elecmon questioned, seeing Leomon's soulless eyes. "Leomon, what's wrong?"

"Lord Devimon wants the boy," Leomon grumbled, taking a slow, threatening step forward.

"Lord Devimon?" Elecmon asked in horror.

"That's right!" Rainey shouted. "Devimon did something to him and now Leomon is working for Devimon!"

"I can't believe it!" Elecmon cried desperately. "The protector of File Island has become servant to it's antagonist?"

"If you do not sacrifice the boy, you will be punished," Leomon growled.

"I can fight!" Lopmon said to Rainey, his eyes asking permission.

"No!" Elecmon said, pulling the two near him. "You can't! If Leomon really is working for Devimon, then he's our enemy! But he's too strong! Even if Lopmon and I combined our power, we wouldn't be able to beat him!"

"There's got to be something we can do!" Rainey wailed. "We can't let him win!"

"No," Elecmon agreed, "we certainly can't allow him to do that!"

"So what are you suggesting?" Lopmon wondered.

"I'll fight him and you two run!" Elecmon directed.

Rainey had a look of despair in his eyes. He wished there was another way out, but he knew Leomon would simply overpower them both and maybe even kill Lopmon. This way, Elecmon could occupy his attention so that Rainey and Lopmon could get in the forest and put some distance between him and them, and then Leomon would come after them because that's apparently why he'd come in the first place.

"Let's go," Rainey said quietly. Lopmon looked into his partner's eyes and understood. He leapt up to rest on Rainey's shoulders, and the boy began running off into the trees.

Leomon took a step after them, but Elecmon stopped him.

"Don't think about it!" he challenged. "I'm not going to let you hurt them!"

"Do not be a fool," Leomon replied.

"Super Thunder Strike!"

* * *

Celebrate: NEXT CHAPTER IS THE SEASON FANALE!

Man, I'm excited. Anyways, I've been enjoying reading UltraSonikku's "Zero Two: A Revision" (I highly recommend!), and, taking advice from its success, I'm going to be doing things a little differently around here when Season Two begins (in chapter 14). More details next chapter (unless I forget . . . lol!). If I forget, you'll just find out when Chapter 14 rolls around.


	13. The Prophecy

Author's Note: Wow . . . I've worked way overtime today to produce this chapter by 4/11/05 . . . seven months since the start of this chapter. I know, it's a little slow (not quite two chapters a month, but close), but I think things are speeding up and, of course, getting better. Well, I wanted to (finally) finish season one, and I thought an anniversary would be a good time to do it. Happy anniversary!

Author's Note: Since this is the last chapter for the first season, I'll be doing things a little differently next season to make it better. There will be noticeable changes.

**Previously . . .**

Devimon raised both hands and the beds rose into the air, holding a child, a Digimon, and the child's clothes on each. They all let out cries of alarm.

"What are you doing?" Blake screamed as they circled in the air around the devastated mansion.

"Instead of me taking your lives from you, you have taken a slave from me," Devimon said. "So now I will take away the source of your power and, mark my words, you will die!"

"Leave us alone!" Becca wailed.

"You've overcome all challenges you've faced thus far," Devimon said. "But how will you fare when you're all alone? Since you gain so much strength from your friends, allow me to send you by yourselves all over the Digital world!"

* * *

"No, no more children fell to this island," Frigimon replied, sorry he couldn't help. "But, they could have fallen to some of the other islands surrounding File Island."

"Yeah," Adam nodded.

"Well, why are we just standing around here?" Blake said. "Let's get going!"

Frigimon led them off. In minutes they were at the coast, staring at the sea. They could see another island pretty close by, and beyond that, yet another. In the center of the farthest isle was a large mountain, shooting into the sky.

"File Island," Blake muttered. "We have to get back there."

"I'm taking you to that island," Frigimon pointed. "It'll take you about half the way to File Island."

"Thanks," Adam said. "We'll be able to make it from there."

"Good," Frigimon's eyes showed that he was smiling. He held out his hands and picked the boys up, placing one boy and his Digimon partner on either shoulder.

"Now, how are we going to do this?" Blake asked, looking uncertainly at the water.

"Like this!" Frigimon grunted, rearing back. "Subzero Ice Punch!" His fist slammed into the water, and it instantly froze.

"Oh," Blake said sheepishly. "That's how."

And so, the boys rode a snowman across an ice bridge towards a new island.

"We're going to find the others," Blake said. "And then, Devimon won't know what hit him!"

* * *

Becca walked to Sukamon and Chuumon.

"Thank you for all of your help," she said. She bent down and kissed each of them quickly on the cheek. Their faces burned red as she ran to join Casey and Prairiemon atop Tortomon.

Tortomon began swimming swiftly for File Island. Becca, Casey, and Prairiemon waved at Centarumon, Sukamon, and Chuumon.

"At this pace," Becca said after a minute, when the island had begun to fade and File had begun to loom ahead, "we'll make it to File in no time."

"Let's hope we can find the others when we get there," Casey nodded. "Then we can beat Devimon and go home!"

"Right," Becca smiled. She stood up and yelled towards File Island, "We're the DigiDestined, Devimon, and we're coming for you!"

* * *

"So what were you planning on doing next?" Blake asked, addressing his question to Cameron and Meggy.

"We were gonna head to Infinity Mountain to look for you and the others," Meggy said.

"Wow," Blake said. "That's exactly what we were going to do."

"So let's go," Adam said. "Kuwagamon can fly us back to File Island. Then, hopefully, we can find Casey, Becca, and Rainey."

"Right," Kuwagamon agreed, stooping down to allow the others to climb on his back.

Monochromon, Lynxmon, and Vilemon DeDigivolved to Gizamon, Rabbitmon, and DemiDevimon. They, along with all their partners, climbed onto Kuwagamon's back. With a buzz of his wings, he lifted from the haunted isle and began to head through the darkness and fog towards File Island.

"We'll find the others," Blake said. "And then, we're going after Devimon!"

* * *

"Hey!" Elecmon cried, galloping up to Lopmon and Rainey and giving Leomon a strange look. "What are you doing here, Leomon?"

"The children," Leomon growled lowly, drawing his sword slowly and ominously. "I am looking for the children. Give me the boy."

"No way!" Lopmon yelled. "There's no way I'll let you lay a finger on my friend!"

"Leomon?" Elecmon questioned, seeing Leomon's soulless eyes. "Leomon, what's wrong?"

"Lord Devimon wants the boy," Leomon grumbled, taking a slow, threatening step forward.

"Lord Devimon?" Elecmon asked in horror.

"That's right!" Rainey shouted. "Devimon did something to him and now Leomon is working for Devimon!"

"I can't believe it!" Elecmon cried desperately. "The protector of File Island has become servant to it's antagonist?"

"If you do not sacrifice the boy, you will be punished," Leomon growled.

"Let's go," Rainey said quietly. Lopmon looked into his partner's eyes and understood. He leapt up to rest on Rainey's shoulders, and the boy began running off into the trees.

Leomon took a step after them, but Elecmon stopped him.

"Don't think about it!" he challenged. "I'm not going to let you hurt them!"

"Do not be a fool," Leomon replied.

"Super Thunder Strike!"

* * *

**CHAPTER THIRTEEN**

**The Prophecy**

Rainey's breath erupted from his chest in short, ragged breaths. Lopmon had risen off his shoulder and was flying along behind him. Both boy and Digimon would occasionally shoot glances over their shoulders, afraid to see Leomon coming after them.

"Looks - like - Elecmon's - doing - better - than - we - expected," Rainey panted, deciding that he wouldn't talk any more; his mouth was too dry.

"Let's hope Leomon leaves him alone," Lopmon agreed. "I don't want him to be deleted just for us."

They continued, going down a lightly sloping hill. The ground had sparce patches of scraggly grass, wet mud, and moss-covered rocks. The trees were sparse, and the two were coming upon a clearing of sorts.

Rainey's breath caught in his throat. He put on the breaks, slipping on the muddy slope and falling painfully on a rock.

"Ogremon!" Lopmon announced.

He was standing between two trees ahead of them. His head was down, his big, white eyes staring them down. His small blue eyes were cold and soulless. The shadows outlined his green muscles. His great, right hand gripped his lethal bone weapon, the clawed fingernails curving menacingly around its handle.

To the tune of Itsy-Bitsy Spider, Ogremon sang in a slow, low, menacing voice dripping with malice, "The itsy-bitsy child fell into Ogremon's trap."

Lopmon took a moment to suck in some oxygen, then screamed out, his voice cracking, "Blazing Fire!"

The red energy orb exploded on Ogremon's chest, blanketing his upper body in smoke and ash.

A gust of wind howled through the trees, ushering the remnants of Lopmon's attack quickly from the battlefield. Ogremon's gaping, grinning mouth was unphased. No sound escaped his throat, but his eyes showed an evil chuckle.

Rainey absent-mindedly wiped the mud from the seat of his shorts. "Come on, Lopmon," he encouraged, a hoarse whisper all he could manage. "You can do it!" _You have to_, he decided not to add.

"Blazing Fire!" Lopmon shouted, another orb exploding in almost the exact same spot on Ogremon's body. But this time was different.

Lopmon hurtled towards Ogremon, his eyes intent on victory. Then, just within Ogremon's reach, he snapped to position and his ears erupted wide, sending a gale-force wind straight into Ogremon's gut.

Ogremon's breath coughed painfully out of him, but he, with a glint of the eye, announced, "Pummel Whack!"

Lopmon's body was crushed beneath the enormous bone mallet of Ogremon's, and there was no doubt in Rainey's mind that, at the least, Lopmon was out cold.

"Now," Ogremon drawled, stepping over Lopmon's unconcious form and advancing slowly on Rainey, enjoying his victory. "There's only one last thing to do to ensure Devimon's victory over the Digital World, and that is to _kill you!_"

Rainey couldn't breath. His eyes watered and the tears flowed from his eyes. He fell to his knees, the cold mud wrapping around them like death itself trying to pull him into the ground.

Ogremon stood over him and slowly, methodically raised his bone mallet, drawing the moment out, a thousand years passing as it rose into the air.

_No! _Rainey thought despairingly. _It can't be! We can't have lost! Am I going to die without even getting to see my big brother again?_

Ogremon breathed in to announce his Pummel Whack attack, when -

"Fist of the Beast King!"

A fireball erupted into Ogremon's side, who rocketed through the foliage and out of sight.

It took a moment for Rainey's mind to be brought up to speed. _Leomon was after me and now he stopped Ogremon from killing me?_

But his mind was set straight by the next thing that happened.

"Strong Carapace!"

Energy spikes erupted, flying past Rainey's eyesight and blasting into Ogremon's landing place, covering it with smoke.

Rainey looked up, the tears, now of joy, flowing freely from his eyes.

Casey, smiling, walked into view, followed by Becca, Leomon, and Tortomon.

"I've finally found you," Casey smiled.

"Big brother!" Rainey said breathlessly.

They looked at each other for just a moment, before both sprinted to the other's outstretched arms. Tears ran down the faces of both boys as they held each other close after nearly two days of seperation.

"You've been okay?" Casey asked, holding his brother out at arm's length and examining him.

"Of course," Rainey assured him. "Until Leomon showed up and spoiled everything."

"Leomon?" Casey wondered aloud, looking around.

"Elecmon's keeping him busy," Rainey said.

"Okay," Casey nodded. "Leomon, make sure Ogremon doesn't try anything." Nodding, Leomon walked over to Ogremon's seemingly unconcious form.

"I need to DeDigivolve and regain energy after that long trip," Tortomon said.

"Right," Becca confirmed, smiling.

Tortomon glowed with golden light, shrinking in size to reveal a tired Otamamon, who was immediately scooped into her partner's arms. "Thank you, Otamamon."

"Yeah, thanks for the lift," Casey said.

Rainey was now bending down by his Digimon partner, pulling Lopmon into his arms and cradling him gently. "Thanks for being so brave!"

"We'll need to nurse Lopmon back to health, but I don't think it'll take that long," Becca said, bending down beside Rainey.

"Yeah," Rainey agreed.

"That is, if you ever get the chance!"

The kids recognized the gruff voice and leapt to the side just in time to avoid being hit by the flaming lion's-head fire attack that rocketed past.

Casey, sure his friends were unhurt, whipped around. "Leomon! Help!"

Casey's partner responded, leaping forward and standing before Devimon's servant Leomon.

"I will not allow you to hurt these children!" Leomon growled.

"You will not be able to stop me," Evil Leomon responded darkly. "My master's will will be done."

"I don't think so! Fist of the Beast King!" Leomon slammed his fiery fist into Evil Leomon's midsection - hard. The explosion covered the small area in smoke, obscuring the two Leomon from view.

Suddenly, the smoke began writhing as if it had a mind of its own, thrown about by what appeared to be lightning-fast punches being thrown between the contenders in the smoke field. Several explosions rocked the forest, the fiery remnants of powerful attacks floating out of the smoke field.

Without warning, Leomon flew from the dissipating cloud, smashing through two trees and into a third, hitting with his back, horizontal in the air. He fell to the dirt with a pained grunt.

Evil Leomon began a slow, ominous walk towards Leomon, who was struggling to stand. "Face it," Evil Leomon said. "There is no way you can win."

"Oh, no!" Casey said, worriedly looking at his prostrate partner and egging him on silently, willing him to stand.

"Oh, yes!" Ogremon said, stepping into their field of view. "But you don't need to worry about that! What you need to worry about is _me_!"

Becca gulped.

"He's back!" Rainey muttered, searching for a way out and backing away from Ogremon's slowly advancing form.

Casey and Becca were also backing up, getting close to each other and hoping that it would bring some kind of protection.

"Casey!" Leomon cried, grunting as he was held against a tree by Evil Leomon. "Casey! I'll find some way to help you!"

The children continued to back away, coming to a stop against a tree.

Ogremon chuckled. "He won't be able to help you! No one can!"

"Well, you're partially right!" A familiar female voice said.

Becca's frightened face became one of joy. "Meggy!"

"That's right!" Cameron said beside her, both of them stepping into view. "Meggy and Cameron have arrived!"

Casey was happy to see them, but he suddenly frowned. "Where are your Digimon?"

Ogremon laughed heartily. "Doesn't matter! Pummel Whack!" The great bone weapon swung down at great speed, intent on crushing the cowering children before him.

It was not to be.

"Nightmare Shocker!"

"Wild Nail Rush!"

Ogremon's downward thrust was halted by the jarring jolt of electricity that shot through his system as Vilemon appeared through the canopy of tree leaves. Immediately afterwards, Lynxmon appeared, quick as a thunderclap, from behind the very tree the three DigiDestined children had been pressed against. Her burning hot nails slashed across Ogremon's chest.

Letting out a blood-curdling scream, Ogremon stumbled backwards, away from the DigiDestined. It seemed he would stumble all the way out of view, clutching the scratches on his chest and moaning in pain, until he finally toppled over on his back, unconscious.

"Now that that's settled," Cameron muttered, turning to look back at the Duel of Leomon.

The battle was again raging, and Casey ran to the edge of the clearing that had become the battlefield, cheering on his partner.

Leomon leapt at Evil Leomon, grabbing and pulling himself up by Evil Leomon's mane. Evil Leomon roared indignantly, slamming punch after punch into Leomon's abdomen.

Roaring in pain and anger, Leomon's fiery fists came together, and he slammed his fists down onto the top of Evil Leomon's head, causing an enormous explosion.

Once again, it was Leomon who flew from the ensuing smoke cloud, and Evil Leomon waved away the smokey remnants by drawing his sword and slashing it threateningly in the air.

Leomon drew his own sword and they charged at each other, the sound of metal on metal clanging throughout the forest.

"Does Leomon need help?" Meggy asked quietly, walking up beside Casey and gesturing to Lynxmon and Vilemon.

"I know he can do it!" Casey replied, trying to convince himself.

Cameron gave Meggy a reassuring look as she returned to the group standing back away from the fight.

Leomon and Evil Leomon traded blow after blow, slashing and blocking, never cutting into their foe but roaring with anger and the lust of battle with every slice.

"Go, Leomon!" Casey cheered once more.

The Leomon's swords criss-crossed, and they pushed forward, against one another, their faces drawing close together. Their hot, ragged breath splashed in the face of their enemy.

"You realize you are the weaker fighter," Evil Leomon growled.

"I - will win!" Leomon grunted, being pushed back slightly. "I will win - for Casey!"

Evil Leomon grinned. "Fool!" With a roar, he exerted his full power and, to the horror of Leomon and the onlookers, there was a metallic snapping sound. Leomon flew across the clearing, landing painfully and skidding to a sudden, jarring halt against a tree.

Leomon's sword lay in shattered pieces on the ground.

Evil Leomon chuckled darkly. "You have fallen. I will finish this fight." He raised his sword, preparing to charge at Leomon, who was still sitting against the tree.

"Volcanic Strike!"

A great fireball rocketed from the dinosaur-like creature that had appeared secretly at the edge of the battle and exploded onto Evil Leomon, sending him flying.

"Monochromon!" Casey cried with relief.

"Finally," Meggy sighed.

"Wondering when they'd show up," Cameron added.

"Hey, guys!" Blake said cheerfully, hopping down off Monochromon's back. He was followed by Adam, with a tired-looking Kunemon draped on his shoulders.

"Looks like we're all back together again!" Adam said, as the two boys ran up to the group.

Monochromon stomped to stand beside Leomon, who was slowly, painfully getting to his feet. The two Champion Digimon stood together, staring down their foe, who was also having a hard time getting up.

"You - will pay for that sneak attack!" Evil Leomon grunted angrily, his eyes blazing.

* * *

Devimon observed the battle with anger. Ogremon was down - the weakling - and Leomon was actually losing to only two of the DigiDestined brats' Digimon!

"Looks like Leomon needs some help," Devimon muttered. With a wave of his hand, ten Black Gears appeared, flying off to the battle happening in the forest nearby.

* * *

"Fist of the Beast King!"

"Volcanic Strike!"

The two flaming attacks shot for Evil Leomon, who crossed his arms across his face, bracing himself for the impact. The fire exploded around him, and he was engulfed in smoke for the third time that day.

The two DigiDestined Digimon stared as the smoke cleared. Suddenly, a familiar sound met their ears.

"Black Gears!" Becca cried fearfully.

"_Lots _of Black Gears!" Cameron added.

Ten Black Gears flew over the trees and into the small, circular clearing. Evil Leomon smiled. "Devimon sends me help."

The DigiDestined watched in horror as Evil Leomon turned his face to the sky, spread his arms wide, and waited. The Black Gears, seemingly with a mind of their own, spun around behind him and, one after the other, absorbed - very painfully - into his back.

Evil Leomon screamed, a horrible sound, as the Gears entered him. His pale yellow fur began to darken to a dark gray. His glistening golden mane changed to greasy black. His claws and teeth elongated, becoming chipped. His eyes became dark. Finally, he grew in size, almost two heads taller.

"Um . . ." Casey muttered.

"That changes things," Blake said.

"Now," Evil Leomon said. Then it looked as though he dissappeared -

And reappeared behind Leomon.

"Aah!" Leomon roared in pain as he was hit in the back, dropping like a sack of potatoes.

Evil Leomon was already moving. He leapt into the air and easily smashed his kick into Monochromon's side, sending him flying into the trees.

Both Digimon DeDigivolved to their Rookie forms, letting out painful groans.

Evil Leomon turned to face the DigiDestined children.

"Lynxmon!" Meggy cried. Lynxmon and Vilemon rushed towards Leomon -

And their Rookie forms flew from the smoke caused by Leomon's now super-powered Fist of the Beast King attack.

"Oh, no!" Meggy cried. "Our Digimon!"

"That should be the least of your worries," Leomon growled, walking towards Casey and Blake. "Think of your own lives."

Blake nudged Casey. "What if we use our Digivices? Like I did in Devimon's mansion?"

"Of course!" Casey cried. "We met Centarumon. He told us that our Digivices are really important - and powerful!"

"Quit your gabbing!" Leomon growled, suddenly before the two DigiDestined and raising his sword for the killing blow.

"Oh, we were just about to!" Blake said with a grin. He and Casey raised their Digivices, the screens facing Leomon's face.

Golden light erupted from said screens, bathing Leomon in their power. He let out a horrible scream, and the children saw black energy rising from his back. After a few minutes, the golden light faded, and the boys were looking at a prostrate Leomon.

"What's wrong with him?" Gizamon grunted, dragging his weak body over to his partner. Prairiemon was doing the same, using his large claws as crutches.

"I'd say that was kind of painful," Blake suggested.

"What about Ogremon?" Meggy said, whirling around.

He was gone.

"Guess he ran off when he saw Leomon get beat," Adam said. "After all, Leomon was way stronger than Ogremon."

"True," Meggy agreed. She and the rest of the kids picked their Rookie Digimon up into their arms, cradling them closely.

Leomon groaned, his arm moving slowly to push against the ground, lifting himself up slowly. The children stepped back impulsively, not really totally certain that Leomon had been freed from Devimon's dark influence.

When Leomon was on his feet, shaking his head and holding his palm to his forehead. "Oh . . . my head!" he groaned.

"Leomon?" Becca said quietly, stepping forward. "Are you okay now?"

"Yes," he answered, standing to his full height. "I am finally again freed from Devimon's evil. Thanks to you children."

"Yeah, well, it wasn't easy," Adam said with a chuckle.

Leomon nodded pensievely. "I understand. I apologize for any harm I have caused to you and your Digimon partners."

"S'okay," Blake shrugged.

Leomon smiled at the boy who'd just spoken. That one might be slightly too carefree, but his forgiving nature was a fortunate quality. It seemed the others shared that quality as they all nodded agreement.

"Thank you for your forgiveness," Leomon said. "Allow me to make it up to you by offering you a place to stay tonight."

"Sounds great," Blake said, not even looking to see if his friends for their input. Needless to say, they all happily agreed to Leomon's hospitality.

* * *

Devimon looked out from his mansion atop Infinity Mountain; the very same mansion Cameron, Meggy, and Adam had seen when they ventured there just before arriving in Devimon's mansion trap.

"So the children are back together," he muttered, frowning slightly. After all, his objective had been to split them up, decrease their power, and ultimately cause their individual, lonely, untimely deaths. "No matter."

He grimaced at the red setting sun. "They were nearly unable to defeat Leomon at all, and they only did so by using their Digivices. Now they're all weakened and exhausted. They won't be ready by tomorrow to fight me, though they'll probably think they are."

A small smile graced his lips. "They thought Leomon was difficult, but his power holds nothing to mine, even when I used Black Gears to strengthen him. When the battle happens tomorrow, as I know all of the children plan it to, they will be horribly surprised by my strength."

He grimaced as another thought crossed his mind. "The prophecy - what a disgrace. Come tomorrow, our battle will prove the prophecy false."

Ogremon chickled in the dark corner of the room. The children had no idea what was in store for them.

* * *

They had followed Leomon a short ways away from Infinity Mountain, towards the coast. They were a few minutes' walk from the beach, near an overhanging piece of earth. It was covered with lush grass, hosting some small trees.

"I wish I had somewhere more comfortable," Leomon said apologetically.

"This is fine," Blake said.

"As long as we don't mind getting some mud on our clothes," Becca laughed, masking the fact that she _did_ care about getting mud on her clothes - very much.

The kids began poking around, hunting for the most suitable place to lie down for sleep. The Digimon, all now conscious but still exhausted, helped their partners.

Leomon came to a seat near Blake, Casey, and their Digimon. He began by saying, "I'm especially sorry to you two, Gizamon and Prairiemon, for harming you, and you, Blake and Casey, for hurting your Digimon."

"I told you," Blake said with a laugh, "it's okay!"

"Definitely," Casey agreed.

"No harm done," Gizamon said tiredly.

"Not really," Prairiemon yawned.

"Well then," Leomon said, finally truly feeling resolved, "I was assuming that you plan to challenge Devimon tomorrow?"

"That's why we're here," Blake said. "We're supposed to purge the evil, right?" Casey had told the kids about the legend of the Digivice and DigiDestined.

"Yes, but you need to be careful," Leomon warned. "Devimon is no trivial foe. His power is like that which you haven't yet experienced. Are you truly certain you're ready to face him?"

Casey's eyes were unfocused and far off. "I don't know, but we have to."

"Why?"

"It's our destiny," Casey replied. What he really wanted was simply to make it back home.

"We're gonna need sleep, though," Blake said, lying down and curling Gizamon in his arms.

"Of course," Leomon replied. "Devimon's influence has taken its toll on me and I will be unable to truly fight for quite some time. I'll sit up and guard this area while you children sleep."

"Thank you, Leomon," Blake said with closed eyes. "You're a big help."

* * *

The moon was full as it often was in the Digital World, a bath of white light on the digital landscape.

Devimon's lips curled into a sneer as he stared out at the treetops under which the DigiDestined slept under the watchful eye of Leomon.

_Soon my victory over the Digital World will be assured_.

"Master," Ogremon said from nearby. "What would you have me do when the children come for battle?"

Devimon smiled. "You have been a good servant. You will indeed be participating in the battle."

With that, he reached forward. Ogremon realized what he was doing and screamed, but it was too late, and besides, who would have challenged Devimon to save Ogremon anyway?

* * *

The morning sun was just appearing, its light reaching around Infinity Mountain to tickle the noses of the sleeping children. Leomon glared at the silhouette of Infinity Mountain, knowing that Devimon was there, totally aware of the DigiDestined's plans to attack him.

"Devimon!" he growled, rueing the fact that he would be unable to contribute to the Dark Digimon's demise.

Suddenly, the earth began to tremble.

The children awoke with a start. Blake was on his feet in a second, followed closely by Gizamon and Casey, who was busy pulling Prairiemon up with him. "What's that?" Blake cried, startled.

The weak rays of sun vanished as darkness washed over the entirety of the sky.

"Devimon!" Leomon growled. All the children were on their feet now.

"Let's go!" Blake said. "We need to see what's happening, and we'll have a better view on the beach!"

The seven children burst off at a run, heading for the beach only minutes away.

* * *

"It is time!" Devimon said, his arms spread wide. He'd already spread his darkness across the sky, and now it was time to show his power to the DigiDestined.

The already dark sky was turned pitch black as it _moved _towards the devil Digimon's fortress atop Infinity Mountain.

* * *

"What's that?" Becca cried, pointing to the sky.

"It's moving!" Rainey cried in horror.

"That's not the sky," Casey muttered.

"He's right!" Blake said. "Those are Black Gears!"

It was true: The moving Black Sky was really an ocean of Black Gears.

"What are we going to do?" Meggy wondered.

"I'd say all we can really do is wait," Blake said simply.

"And pray," Becca added in a whisper.

The wait wasn't long. The Gears headed to the Roman-like structure on Infinity Mountain's summit, where Devimon recieved them. Though the children couldn't see it, Gear after Gear flew into the great hall that Devimon had made his home and went straight into his back, sliding vertically into his spine between his large, black wings. With each gear, he got larger and larger.

The DigiDestined looked on in horror as the temple-like building began to buckle and crack, expanding outwards. With a deafening crash, the roof split open and Devimon rose from it.

His appearance was nearly the same, but now he had a large orange cross across his chest and he was the size of a small skyscraper.

"DigiDestined!" his voice roared across the landscape of File Island, rocking the DigiDestined to their souls. "It is time for the final battle! The prophecy will be broken and you will all die!" In one thunderous step, Devimon began his approach to the beach battle ground.

"He's right," Blake muttered. "Gizamon: it's time!"

Golden light engulfed the beach.

"Gizamon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Monochromon!"

"Prairiemon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Leomon!"

"Rabbitmon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Lynxmon!"

"Otamamon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Tortomon!"

"DemiDevimon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Vilemon!"

"Kunemon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Kuwagamon!"

Six Champion Digimon stood between their partners and the approaching devil.

"Rainey!" Lopmon said. "I'm going to help them protect you!"

Rainey worried for Lopmon; he had trouble with Elecmon. Against his personal feelings on the subject, he nodded approval. Lopmon joined the other six Digimon.

Devimon saw the attack force in the fading light of the Digivices and smiled. They were so confident in their abilities. He'd be sure to show them the error of their ways before killing them.

"Here he comes!" Monochromon growled. "Get ready!"

"We must protect our partners!" Vilemon said.

"And defeat the evil!" Leomon agreed.

"We'll fight our hardest!" Lopmon included.

"No matter what, we won't give up!" Tortomon added.

"We can do it!" Kuwagamon roared.

"For the Digital World!" Lynxmon cheered.

The children beamed at their partners, cheering at Lynxmon's statement.

Devimon's smile did not falter.

"Volcanic Strike!"

Monochromon launched the first volley, hitting Devimon in the left arm. The attack exploded, but caused no noticeable damage.

"Don't think your pathetic attempts to harm me will prove to be of any kind of use," Devimon gloated, his monstrous form approaching.

"You think this is pathetic? Fist of the Beast King!"

"Nightmare Shocker!"

Two more attacks exploded on contact - and did nothing. Devimon's even, slow stride wasn't slowed in the slightest.

"Your attempts are futile!" Devimon taunted.

"Thermal Mane!"

"Strong Carapace!"

"Scissor Claw!"

Three attacks combined, coming to an explosive rendezvous on Devimon's chest. His head was engulfed by the great smoke output of the attack combination.

He wasn't slowed in the slightest.

"You can't be serious," Blake muttered. He had honestly not expected Devimon's power to be so seemingly boundless.

"Blazing Fire!"

The single, tiny orange orb flew to Devimon, dissipating against him.

Devimon's laughter erupted from his throat, piercing the DigiDestined's very souls. He had to stop and grab his sides as jovial laughter boomed throughout the world.

"You fool!" he roared. "You call that an attack?"

"That's all we've got," Rainey mumbled so no one else could hear.

"If we attack him all together, we can win!" Blake said confidently. "Attack!"

"Volcanic Strike!"

"Fist of the Beast King!"

"Thermal Mane!"

"Strong Carapace!"

"Nightmare Shocker!"

"Scissor Claw!"

"Blazing Fire!"

Seven various attacks flew at Devimon, who had resumed his approach towards the DigiDestined. A great explosion sounded as fire and smoke rose from the target. Devimon's laughter began again through the smoke, muffling the explosion's echoes.

Blake fell to his knees in the sand. "You've got to be kidding me! How can we beat him?"  
"While you figure that out," Monochromon said, "we'll impede his progress!"

At Monochromon's words, the six champions lurched forward. Monochromon stood on one of Devimon's feet, Tortomon on the other. Lynxmon and Leomon were on two of his legs, and Vilemon and Kuwagamon held onto both of his arms. Lopmon followed, flying high into the air and launching Blazing Fire attacks at Devimon's head.

Devimon did finally stop his walk. He'd been crushing the forest beneath his feet and had almost made it to the beach.

"You are a nuisance!" Devimon roared at Lopmon. He inhaled sharply and, with a quick, powerful blow, Lopmon was hurtling down through the air. Rainey ran forward, catching his falling partner. The momentum carried them both down into the sand.

"Don't think you're spectacular," Devimon snapped synically. His great wings prepared to flap. "Evil Wing!"

With the flap, dark wind emanated from Devimon's wings. All six Champions were swept back to the beach, landing painfully in the sand.

"Lynxmon!" Meggy cried. "Are you okay?"

"I'll - be alright!" Lynxmon grunted. "I don't think I can take another hit like that, though!"

"My energy's drained," Vilemon agreed.

Devimon's laugh increased in volume and mirth. "If that's all it takes to get rid of you I shouldn't have let you get away from my mansion!"

_We lost? _Casey thought in terror. _I thought we were supposed to win! That's what Centarumon said!_

"Now it's time to finish this," Devimon said, stepping onto the beach.

With a smile of malice, Devimon's hands rocketed towards the children on the beach.

"No!" Casey screamed.

Devimon's hands were back in the air. In his left hand was Lopmon. In his right hand was Rainey.

"Rainey!" Casey's voice cracked as the scream erupted painfully from his throat.

"Put him down, you monster!" Blake yelled angrily.

"No," Devimon replied simply. "It's pretty simple, really. I'm about to make claim to the Digital World by killing the little one."

"No!" Casey cried, more despair than anger this time. "Centarumon told us the story! We're supposed to win! There's a legend that says we're the DigiDestined! The DigiDestined win!"

"That's true," Devimon said. "Actually, it's much less a legend as it is a prophecy. The Prophecy says that the DigiDestined will indeed rid the Digital World of evil - me - and then be returned to their own world. Oh, but the Prophecy speaks something of great interest."

He chuckled darkly and Rainey and Lopmon screamed as he began to slowly squeeze the air from their lungs.

"Stop it!" Casey ordered, looking despairingly at his dying little brother so high in the sky.

Devimon continued through Rainey and Lopmon's screams, which were already dying from lack of air. "The Prophecy says that the DigiDestined will not only destroy me, but that it will be the youngest DigiDestined boy who causes my demise!"  
The DigiDestined looked at Rainey in disbelief.

"That's why he'll be the first one to go," Devimon said. "After all, the DigiDestined won't be able to fulfill their purpose if they're not all alive, and especially not without the youngest boy."

Rainey's vision was blurring. He was almost completely out of air, and Devimon was crushing his rib cage. He looked over at his partner.

Lopmon. His Digimon partner had quickly become his best friend. How could it end now? How could they die so young, without getting to really spend any time together?

"Lop-mon!" Rainey gasped out.

"There's nothing we can do," Casey muttered from down below. He sank to his knees, his eyes downcast, tears threatening to fall but not yet there.

Suddenly, Devimon's hand erupted in golden light. In truth, it was Rainey's Digivice that was glowing so brilliantly.

"Rainey," Lopmon forced from his lips. "It's gonna be okay."

"Lopmon!" Rainey gasped. "You're -"

"No!" Devimon roared. The light burned his hand, and he dropped the boy.

Rainey fell through the air, and suddenly Devimon's other hand erupted in golden light as well.

"Lopmon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Endigomon!"  
Devimon's hand burst open as Endigomon fell. "Cable Crusher!" he cried, his left arm elongating to snatch free-falling Rainey from the air and pull him close to his chest.

"Lopmon! You Digivolved!" Rainey whispered, still out of breath.

Endigomon was more than twice Rainey's height. His body was entirely brown. He had light brown skin over his muscular, humanoid body. His squat legs were offset by his long arms. His left arm was devoid of a bicep, and instead had a stretchable cable connecting forearm to shoulder. The other arm was small, but not cordlike. Endigomon's forearms were enormous and covered with hair, ending in massive, hairless, five-fingered hands with long, black nails. His chest and shoulders were enormous and disproportionate, covered with the same dark brown hair. His light brown skinned abdomen was long and stretched connecting large hairy chest to large hairy lower-body. Endigomon's head was also enormous and covered with brown hair. He was wearing a white hat that covered the top of his head. The hat was like a head; it had a nose-like horn and two horns on the side, all of them small and not really seeming to be for anything more than looks. The white had had sharp teeth designs and circular yellow eyes. From beneath the hat came Endigomon's rabbit ears, yellow furred and more like a cocker spaniel's. Endigomon's eyes were round and red and his mouth was wide. His black pupils stared angrily at Devimon.

Endigomon crashed into the sand without a flinch.

"Now, that was unexpected," Devimon admitted. "But no matter; you're still just a measly, normal little Champion-level Digimon."

"No he's not," Casey growled. "Leomon?"

Somehow, Casey's partner knew what he was suggesting. His humanoid-lion form began to glow in golden light as Casey held out his Digivice. As Leomon became Prairiemon, a stream of golden light - pure energy - flowed from Casey's Digivice's screen and went into Rainey's Digivice's screen.

The other DigiDestined looked at them, looked at each other, and held out their Digivices as well.

Five more streams of pure, golden energy spewed forth, coalescing in one location.

Rainey's Digivice shown with an unheard of brilliance now, and he turned to point the screen at Endigomon and Devimon.

Devimon took a step back. The light burned his eyes.

The light died down, having transferred from Rainey's Digivice into Endigomon's body.

"Th-this doesn't matter!" Devimon challenged.

"Don't sound so sure of yourself, Devimon!" Endigomon growled sarcastically.

"Just see if you can take me!" Devimon roared. "The Touch of Evil!"

Devimon's hand crackled with black electricity and rushed for Rainey's partner Digimon.

"Endigomon!" Rainey cried worriedly.

Endigomon lifted up. His chest rose and showed what it usually covered: Six turrets built into his skin. "Koko Crusher!" he announced. Energy pellets flew in an undetermined pattern from the six automatic turrets. The golden blasts impacted over and over into Devimon's black skin.

The bullets kept coming. Faster and faster, brighter and brighter, golden, burning power, singing Devimon's skin. The evil Digimon let a roar of pain, indignation, and genuine surprise erupt from his lips.

Endigomon's volley stopped, leaving Devimon hunched over and clutching his burning body. He was steaming and tears involunatirly flowed down his cheeks from his red eyes.

"Give it up, Devimon!" Endigomon ordered.

"No!" Devimon roared. "Pummel Whack!"

"Pummel Whack?" Meggy wondered. "But that's Ogremon's -"

Devimon's chest warped, pushing outwards, and suddenly Ogremon's body was stretching out towards Endigomon, his waist attatched to Devimon's chest and stretching. Ogremon laughed loudly, stretching his hand out to pummel Endigmon with his bone weapon.

"Cable Crusher!" Endigomon's arm extended, smashing _through_ Ogremon's body. Ogremon, with a cry, disentigrated immediately, leaving a circular hole in Devimon's chest.

As the DigiDestined stared disgustedly through Devimon, the hole closed up, leaving Devimon apparently good as new.

"Fine," Devimon spat. "Ogremon was weak. Take this! Evil Wing!"

With a great flap, a wave of black air rushed for Endigomon.

"Koko Crusher!" he cried again, revealing the guns once more and launching more golden pellets. This time they came out faster, impacted harder, and were more numerous. Devimon screamed as his Evil Wing attack disentigrated. The golden bullets smashed into him. Again and again the burning pain hit him in another location, but before his mind could even begin to comprehend the pain of one, it was added to the overall burn as a new wound was inflicted.

Endigmon continued to attack, mercilessly pouring huge amounts of energy into every shot. Devimon's screams in no way compelled Endigomon to feel remorse; he'd been given the chance to surrender and had turned it down. His life was forfeit.

Devimon's scream pierced Becca's ears, and she was on her knees, hands over her ears, tears rolling down her face. _It's so horrible! Just end it, Endigomon!_

Endigmon's attack continued to increase in speed, now barely a pause between shots from just one turret. The blinding golden light of the energy attack was like a replacement sun.

And still, Devimon's screams continued. He may have now been officially losing, but there was no denying the fact that he had truly great power and it was taking a lot out of Endigomon to keep up such a destructive volley.

"It - can't be!" Devimon screamed. "It just can't! I had so much power!"

"You have no idea what true power is," Endigomon said evenly. "And now . . . you never will!"

In a final, triumphant surge, crackling golden light erupted, washing over Devimon who, with a last, dying cry, was deleted.

The golden light faded and, when it had gone, the children saw that the darkness had left the sky and the morning sun could be seen clearly.

Endigomon's body was still glowing with golden energy. He turned to face the children.

"Endigomon?" Rainey asked, sensing something.

"I'm sorry, Rainey," Endigomon said in his deep voice. "I'm so sorry."

"Don't!" Rainey pleaded, feeling the first of many tears streak down his cheek. "Please!"

"What's going on?" Adam asked.

Casey realized, but could hardly bring himself to believe it. He whispered, "He's out."

"Of what?"

"Energy," Cameron answered.

"I'm so, so sorry," Endigomon apologized again as his feet began to disintegrate in golden, floating particles.

"Endigomon!" Becca said with terrified realization.

"You - you can't leave!" Rainey wailed, crying very freely now. "You just can't! You're my best friend!"

"There's nothing I can do," Endigomon said, his hands beginning to disintegrate, his legs already completely gone. "I had to use all my energy. And I mean all of it. Every last ounce. It was the only way to defeat Devimon."

"Endigomon," Rainey whispered, dropping to the sand. Casey ran up to him, wrapping his arms around his brother's shoulders. His brother was sobbing uncontrollably, hardly able to breathe.

"Rainey," Endigomon said, "stay strong." With that, he was deleted.

The only sounds of the beach were the gentle lashings of the waves against the shores and Rainey's uncontrolled sobbing.

Then there was a crackling sound off to the left. Blake turned, searching for the source of the sound.

On the beach, embedded in the sand, was a circular metal object. It was flat and about the size of a large pizza. Golden light began to shine from it as it emitted a static sound.

"What is that?" Becca asked.

Within the golden light, a shape began to form.

"It's a hologram!" Cameron exclaimed. Even Rainey was staring at it through blurry eyes.

As the holographic figure came into focus, the children could see that it was something entirely unexpected.

A man.

* * *

End Season One


	14. Gennai

Author's Note: Hooray! Welcome to Season Two of Digimon: Digital Monsters. I'm hoping to pick up a slightly larger fan-base with this season (UKHoneyB's my only reader who constantly reviews . . . therefore, my only known reader). This one will be better (in my opinion) than the previous one. Enjoy!

Author's Note: Erm . . . well, one of my readers suggested I add a little romance into the story. Now, that's fine with me (I don't want it to be very pronounced, just light stuff, mostly hints of crushes or flirting or something). Since I know all of the people these characters are based off of, I have a hard time choosing which characters should go with which. On the other hand, since I do know them, I can make an educated decision as to who might work. So whoever has any ideas of characters that might go together can suggest them and I'll take it into consideration. I probably won't really incorporate any heavy-duty romance until Digimon II.

Now, onto the reviews (I've been wanting to say this for so long like UltraSonikku) . . .

UKHoneyB: Yeah, it is a bit wierd to have Virus beat Virus, but you have to think down the line, later in the story. It's not Virus forever . . .

Yes, I have been taking clues from UltraSonikku . . . that's my favorite Digimon fic on this site (asides from mine, of course . . . ha).

You'll see the egg this chapter.

About the AU-ness . . . I think you misunderstood me a bit . . . just enjoy the nostalgia for now; you'll understand later.

* * *

**Previously on Digimon: Digital Monsters**

This is Blake speaking. I was minding my own business one day, hanging out with six friends at summer camp when a freak blizzard happened, sweeping us all into an alternate dimension called the Digital World where we met strange little monsters known as Digimon, which is short for Digital Monsters. We were attacked by tons of evil Digimon, but our Digimon partners Digivolved, getting bigger and stronger, to protect us! Then we came face-to-face with Devimon and learned of his plot to take over the Digital World. We learned from Centarumon that we were destined to defeat Devimon and return home, but it looked like Devimon was going to win. Then Lopmon, Rainey's partner, Digivolved to Endigomon and beat Devimon - but at a price. Endigomon used up all his energy and was deleted, the Digimon equivalent of dying. Before anyone could enjoy victory over Devimon, a strange man appeared.

* * *

**CHAPTER FOURTEEN**

**Gennai**

The light flickered as the figure of the man became more defined.

He was wearing body-length red robes with a blue waist-sash. The man's strange clothes weren't his most noticeable feature, though.

He was very, extremely, noticeably old.

His eyes seemed to bulge - but were closed. At least, they looked closed, but the man still had a pensieveness about him. His face seemed to be made of nothing else but wrinkles. His head was bald, save for a thin pony tail of silver hair; so thin that it could easily be overlooked save for the small but noticeable red tie holding the pony tail in place. The man's hands were behind his back. He was very small, and Blake had a sneaking suspicion that it wasn't just because he was appearing in holographic form. He was just roughly four and a half feet tall.

"DigiDestined," the man spoke.

They waited for him to continue on, but he just stood there. They looked at him uncomfortably - and finally, the man coughed impatiently.

"Ahem! DigiDestined!"

"Yeah?" Blake replied. "Who're you?"

The man was a bit taken aback by Blake's bluntness, but he recovered. "My name is Gennai. I've been keeping tabs on you since you got here."

"Oh, really?" Meggy asked.

"Indeed," Gennai replied. "You DigiDestined are very important to the Digital World."

"We noticed," Casey replied. "We just kicked Devimon's butt. So now that that's settled, how do we get home?"

Gennai was quite taken back by the attitude these children had, but continued on. "Sometimes, Casey, things aren't very simple."

"Wait," Casey said, "how do you know my name?"

"I know all of your names," Gennai replied simply. "You are the Chosen Children."

"So what's wrong?" Casey continued. "Why haven't we gone home yet? Is that why you're here?"

"One question at a time, please," Gennai replied calmly. "You haven't gone home because your job is not yet completed."

"But we beat Devimon!" Becca replied stubbornly. "That's what we were supposed to do!"

"It's correct that you were supposed to defeat Devimon," Gennai agreed, "but his destruction isn't all that will let you get back home."

Casey was really getting angry. He wasn't quite sure what he'd expected to happen, but it certainly wasn't anything along the lines of being told he wasn't going home yet.

"Now, the next step in your journey is simple," Gennai explained peacefully. His image disappeared, replaced by the picture of a strange object. Gennai's voice was still explaining, "This is a picture of a Tag."

The Tag was golden. It had a square, clear center that looked like something could be placed inside it. It had an irregular octagonal shape, two sides around the clear square, a top, a bottom, and diagonal sides connecting the sides of the clear square to the top or bottom.

"What is that?" Blake wondered.

"I was getting to that," Gennai huffed. "The Tag is an important object for you all to have because it houses the Crests."

"Crests?" Gizamon asked.

"Again, I was getting to that," Gennai muttered with forced calm. "The Crests are similar to what you see here."

The image of the Tag was replaced by a small, light blue square object. It looked kind of like a computer chip, and seemed just the perfect size to slide into the clear square of the Tag like a picture into a picture frame. It had a slightly darker blue triangle in the center.

"Each Crest has a special color and symbol representing that Crest's uniqueness," Gennai explained. "In other words, a special trait the Crest represents."

"What's this Crest represent?" Rabbitmon asked.

"Nothing," Gennai replied. "This is just a basic model for a Crest. The real Crests look much more spectacular."

"Oh." Rabbitmon felt a little silly.

"What you must first do," Gennai continued, "is find the Tags. They are hidden somewhere in the Digital World, probably near the Crests."

"Where would they be?" Blake asked, one second before Gizamon asked the same question.

"I'm getting to that!" Gennai yelled. He quickly regained his posture as his image replaced that of the pseudo-Crest's. "The Crests are scattered across the continent of Server. You have to find them, but they are well hidden."

"Wait," Blake interrupted. "Continent of Server? Where's that?"

"Surely you didn't think File Island was the only major land mass in the Digital World?" Gennai asked rhetorically, surprised to see that all the children were embarassed with themselves for having believed exactly that. "Well, the continent of Server is West of File Island."

"Don't see it," Blake said lazily. "How do you expect us to get there?"

"I suppose you'll have to build a raft," Gennai replied exhasperatedly, "or something. Your Digimon certainly won't have enough energy to fly or swim to Server; it's quite a distance."

Blake rolled his eyes and sat down on the sand.

"I'm sorry I can't be of more assistance," Gennai said. "But however you do it, it must be done. You need to find the Tags and Crests. It's vital."

"Gennai, are you sure?" Blake asked. "It just doesn't seem necessary for me to find some wierd things."

"These Crests will allow your Digimon to access a new level of power," Gennai explained, patience returned to his voice.

"New level of power?" Blake repeated. "That sounds like a plan!"

"I wish I could tell you more," Gennai said, "but I'm a resident of Server and this long-distance hologram is really draining energy. Gotta run."

The light faded and Gennai was gone.

"Well, if these Tags and Crests can make our Digimon stronger, then let's start building us that raft!" Blake directed, standing again and trying to rally his troops.

"Or, more importantly, get us back home," Casey contradicted quietly, going unheard by any but Rainey and Prairiemon.

"So now we have to build a raft," Gizamon said. "But how?"

"We've got a forest right here," Cameron said, motioning to said forest. "We can cut down and prune some trees and rope them together with vines or something and _voila_!"

"Sounds like a plan!" DemiDevimon cheered from his perch atop Cameron's head.

"We can do it really fast if we use our Digimon!" Blake said, holding out his Digivice. "Gizamon! Think you can Digivolve?"

Gizamon looked optomistic, but a sudden rumble startled him and the rest of the children.

The rumble coming from Gizamon's stomach.

Blake rolled his eyes. "Right. Well, we'll just have to feed you guys and _then _build our raft!" There was general agreement and the children all sat down on the beach to have breakfast.

There was a bit of small-talk bouncing around the circle of diners, but most was quelched by Rainey's downcast demeanor. Casey sat with his arm around his little brother, trying to comfort him. Prairiemon was nearby for extra support if needed.

Casey and Rainey talked under their breaths throughout the whole meal, and finished well before anyone else. Casey stood, pulling Rainey gently up with him.

"We're going for a walk," Casey explained simply. "We'll be back by sundown, at the least."

The kids looked at him for him to elaborate, but he simply stood there, an almost sobbing Rainey wrapped in his arms. Blake gave a slight, understanding nod and Casey nodded back. Then he, Rainey, and Prairiemon - apple still in hand - walked off from the circle of diners.

* * *

"Gizamon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Monochromon!"

The giant dinosaur stood amongst the DigiDestined again. He stared down at Blake. "Just tell me what you need me to do!"

"You can use your Volcanic Strike on the base of some trees to knock them down." He laughed and added, "As long as you don't catch them on fire!"

"Funny," Monochromon replied dryly. He began to move towards the forest.

"We can all help too!" Becca said. "Otamamon!"

"Otamamon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Tortomon!"

"Rabbitmon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Lynxmon!"

"Kunemon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Kuwagamon!"

Three champions headed after Monochromon.

"Tortomon and Kuwagamon can help cut down trees," Cameron explained. "Then Lynxmon, DemiDevimon, and Kuwagamon can help prune all the branches."

DemiDevimon piped up. "And since the two of us aren't busy right now, we'll go look for some strong vines!"

"We can help!" Meggy replied. She, Cameron, and DemiDevimon climbed onto Lynxmon's back, and Lynxmon bounded off into the forest.

"Volcanic Strike!"

"Strong Carapace!"

"Scissor Claw!"

As the Digimon began to knock down trees, Blake recognized a familiar face.

"Fist of the Beast King!"

"It's Leomon!" Blake and Becca exclaimed simultaneously.

Indeed it was. Leomon had come to help the DigiDestined after they helped free him from Devimon's control.

"Hello, children!" Leomon replied, stacking some logs onto Monochromon's back and hoisting some more into his arms. The two Digimon carried the logs back to the beach for pruning.

"Nice of you to join us!" Adam said with a smile.

"Anything for the DigiDestined," Leomon smiled back.

* * *

"So, what exactly is Primary Village?" Casey asked.

"It's where Lopmon and I were when we were attacked by Leomon," Rainey replied quietly. "It's where Digimon come from."

Casey understood Rainey's hopes and nodded. He wasn't sure Rainey should get his hopes up, but anything was bound to work in the Digital World.

"So . . . uh, this isn't far, is it?" Casey wondered.

Rainey gave him a disapproving look.

"I'm not trying to be disrespectful or rude or anything," Casey explained defensively. "It's just because I told the others that we'd be back by sunset."

"We've got the entire day," Rainey replied. "That's more than enough time."

"So what do you think these Crests will do?" Prairiemon asked.

"Gennai said there'll be a new level of power," Casey said. "So I guess you'll get a lot stronger somehow."

"Maybe new attacks?" Rainey asked.

"I was thinking an entirely new level," Casey thought aloud. "Something beyond the Champion level. Something incredibly powerful."

"Beyond Champion?" Prairiemon asked. "You mean I could become an even stronger form than Leomon?"

Casey nodded. "That's what I was thinking."

"Wow," Prairiemon smiled. "That would be amazing."

* * *

Cameron and Meggy returned in about a half an hour with an ample amount of strong looking vines. Monochromon DeDigivolved to Gizamon, and he joined DemiDevimon, Lynxmon, and Kuwagamon for the pruning process.

"Scissor Claw!"

"Wild Nail Rush!"

"Demi Dart!"

"Spinning Attack!"

Kuwagamon's enormous pincers slashed across the logs. Lynxmon zipped from log to log, slashing branches with her clothes. DemiDevimon blasted sharp puffs of energy at individual branches. Gizamon turned himself into a buzzsaw, slashing through branch after branch.

"At this rate, we'll have ourselves a raft before lunch!" Becca exclaimed happily as Tortomon DeDigivolved and Otamamon returned to her side.

Leomon took out his sword and began hacking off branches as well. "Anything I can do to aid the DigiDestined is my pleasure!" He grunted, chopping another branch off a piece of the future raft.

Blake smiled. In no time they'd be on their way to those Tags and Crests on the brand new continent of Server.

* * *

"We're getting close," Rainey muttered, almost inaudibly.

_He must be torn up inside, _Casey thought, sadly looking at his brother. He couldn't imagine what it'd be like without Prairiemon; if he had to watch Prairiemon be deleted right before his very eyes. Casey's eyes began to water with tears of sorrow just thinking about that concept.

"Here it is," Rainey whispered. Casey couldn't see the tears he'd been holding back for so long begin to stream down his cheeks.

* * *

Kuwagamon and Leomon were hoisting logs up into the air while Vilemon, who'd Digivolved once the pruning was complete, tied them up with the thick vines.

Vilemon swerved all throughout the logs held in the air by the collective eight arms of the two Champion level Digimon.

"I have to say, this is certainly a wild level of progress," Adam chuckled, admiring his enormous, powerful, insectoid Digimon partner.

Rabbitmon was still tired from the morning's exploits as Lynxmon, panting in Meggy's arms, but she smiled and said, "Definitely. I didn't expect to have this raft near finished before lunch."

"We can all thank Leomon for that, I'd say," Gizamon added.

"Yep," Blake agreed, flashing a grateful smile at the great lion warrior. "Never could've gotten this far this fast without the help of Leomon!"

"He sure has been working hard," Cameron agreed.

"You're the DigiDestined," Leomon grunted. "You're the saviors of our world. There's nothing I'd rather do than help you in your quest."

"Awfully noble of you," Blake said.

* * *

Rainey broke out into the run.

"Elecmon!"

The red rabbit's ears perked up. He gently placed the Punimon he'd been attending to back safely in his crib and turned in the direction of the familiar voice.

"Rainey!" Elecmon cried in glee. "You're back! You're safe!"

Rainey stopped in front of Elecmon. "Yeah," he said with a forlorn smile. "We won."

Elecmon smiled. "Of course." He looked around, noticing Casey and Prairiemon walking slowly towards them, taking in all they could see of Primary Village.

Elecmon's eyes turned back to Rainey, full of care and concern. "What happened?" he asked, his arms open. Rainey dropped to his knees, accepting Elecmon's offered hug and letting sobs escape freely again.

"Oh, it was terrible!" Rainey sobbed. "Devimon was coming at us, and he was just so strong! Then he started to squeeze all the air out of me and Lopmon's lungs, and Lopmon just - he Digivolved! It was so great - and, then . . ." Rainey trailed off, his voice being too choked by sobs.

"It's okay, it's okay," Elecmon soothed, patting Rainey's back with his big, clawed paw. "There there. It'll be all right."

"No!" Rainey wept. "It won't! He's gone! Gone forever! He gave himself up for me and now I can't even say thank you!"

"It'll be all right," Elecmon said. "I promise."

"Oh, Elecmon!" Rainey wept into Elecmon's shoulder.

Casey and Prairiemon sidled up behind them silently, recieving an understanding, sympathetic look from Elecmon. Casey watched for a minute, then knelt down and placed his hand on his brother's shoulder. Rainey let go of Elecmon and fell into his brother's arms. The four stayed together, the breeze gently trying to comfort them.

* * *

The kids sat down with Leomon for lunch, admiring their handiwork. The raft had already been completed.

"We've got the entire day ahead of us," Blake said, looking around the beach. "Anyone feel like a swim?"

"I think I want to go for a walk," Becca replied.

"I'll go with you," both Meggy and Adam said in unison. They gave each other a look and laughed it off.

"I'll stay here for a swim," Cameron smiled at Blake.

"Alright!" Blake exclaimed. "Sounds like a day!"

"Just don't get sick of the ocean before tomorrow," Meggy joked, waggling her finger in a motherly way at Blake and laughing.

"I'll try not to," Blake chuckled back.

"How 'bout you, Leomon?" Adam asked.

"I shall remain with you today and see you off in the morning," Leomon replied serenely.

"Well, thanks for all your help," Adam repeated what they'd all said many times that day.

Leomon simply nodded.

* * *

"Rainey, one thing you have to realize about Digimon," Elecmon said as they walked between two rows of baby-filled cribs, "is that you can't keep a good Digimon down."

"What do you mean?" Rainey asked. He wiped his hand across his cheeks, removing the residue of his sorrows. He'd cried until he literally couldn't anymore, and then Elecmon requested some time alone with Rainey, encouraging Casey and Prairiemon to relax.

"I mean," Elecmon said, hoping to keep it as simple as he could, "that it's rare a Digimon _actually _dies."

Rainey stopped, staring in disbelief at his Digimon friend.

"See here?" Elecmon said, sensing what was happening moments before it happened.

Rainey looked to where Elecmon motioned and gasped. At the end of a row of cribs, a great light shown. The light materialized into a crib with a glowing light for an inhabitant.

"What - ?" Rainey asked, getting shushed - gently - by Elecmon.

The crib's owner materialized quickly, the light forming into an orb. The bright white light diminished, and in its place was a DigiEgg.

The Egg was simple off-white of normal eggs, but it had some light orange triangular markings.

"What's that?" Rainey asked.

"That's what happens when data creates a new Digimon," Elecmon replied. "It's egg appears, then hatches, and the Baby form is nursed until I can release it out into the world when it Digivolves to the In-Training level."

"So what does this have to do with me?" Rainey asked, trying to hold his suspicion - no, his excitement - in check.

"Well," Elecmon said, picking up the DigiEgg and holding it out to Rainey, "it's yours."

Rainey's eyes felt teary, but he knew even if he wanted to cry out of happiness that no tears would come. He gratefully accepted his partner's DigiEgg and looked at Elecmon.

"Elecmon, thank you so much!"

Elecmon smiled. "It's no problem. He's your partner. When he hatches, things'll begin to return to the way they were, with you and him as inseperable friends. Until then, you'll have to keep this Egg very safe and baby his Baby form very carefully."

"I've seen the best at work," Rainey smiled, causing Elecmon to blush.

"Thank you, Rainey," he replied. "Now I suspect your brother will be anxious to get you back to the other DigiDestined."

"Yeah," Rainey nodded.

"Then you take care," Elecmon said.

He and Rainey exchanged one more hug and Rainey walked back to his brother.

* * *

Blake floated on the waves, relaxing as they carried him up and down in a constant, gentle motion.

"This is so great," he sighed, closing his eyes. Gizamon nodded agreement beside him. "After this morning's battle, it just seems so perfect to be able to relax."

"No kidding," Cameron agreed nearby.

"I'm a little worried, though," Blake admitted.

"What?" Cameron asked, caught off guard.

"I'm worried. We're going out on the ocean on a raft made of tree trunks. That's not really my idea of safe."

DemiDevimon laughed. "Not mine, either."

"I guess that's just something we have to deal with, right?" Blake continued, reasoning to himself as well as his small audience. "Gennai said that's where we can find the Tags and Crests, and those are the only things that can help us accomplish our goal, whatever that is now. So there's really no choice."

"Right," Cameron agreed.

"I really shouldn't worry, then," Blake smiled. "It's not worth it, I don't guess. Problem is, I just can't help but worry. I feel like I've kind of been placed in the leadership position, here, and I feel responsible for everyone."

Blake turned to Cameron. "I was scared to death when Devimon split us up. So scared that . . . Well, you know . . ."

"Yeah," Cameron nodded.

After a minute, Blake sighed. "Whatever. What happens happens. I'll just have to hope for the best."

Cameron smiled in agreement. "That's all anyone can do."

* * *

"So I just wanted to go on a walk," Becca said, breaking the silence. They were walking down a dirt path through the peaceful forest of File Island. The sun filtered through the trees, casting leaf-shaped shadows across the ground. The sheltering canopy held in a cool moistness, comforting the afternoon walkers.

"I was actually feeling like a walk myself," Adam said.

"Yeah," Meggy agreed nervously. _Äctually, I wanted to talk to Becca, but whatever._

They walked on in silence for a few minutes and stopped in a familiar place.

"This is where Leomon brought us to sleep last night," Becca recalled with a smile.

"What a great guy!" Otamamon exclaimed.

"Must've been tough for him to be controlled by Devimon," Adam muttered.

Meggy gave him a quizzical look. "How you figure?"

"He was under his control," Adam replied. "I'd bet money that he knew exactly what was happening but had no power to stop it. He had to watch as he tried to kill those he'd probably been waiting for for a long time."

"I never thought of it like that," Meggy muttered.

"I can't imagine how horrible it'd be if I had to watch as I attacked my loved ones," Rabbitmon agreed.

"Then let's be happy he's gone now," Becca said. "Let's be happy Devimon and his Black Gears won't hurt anyone else."

* * *

Casey had shed some tears of his own. He saw the utter joy in his little brother's eyes, the return of his brother's child-like energy, and had been overcome with relief.

He now walked with his arm around his gleeful brother, making good time back to the beach.

"It's so great that Lopmon will be back soon," Prairiemon said.

"I know!" Rainey beamed. "I couldn't believe it when Elecmon told me that this Egg belonged to my partner!"

"It's good to see you smile," Casey whispered, giving his brother's shoulder a loving squeezed. Rainey shot him a bright smile.

* * *

Blake had been standing in his boxer shorts, staring at the sunset and air-drying, when everyone returned. Cameron had left a little while earlier for some food, and he returned with armfuls of fruit, Vilemon pulling his load as well. Becca, Meggy, and Adam returned in light chatter, blushing when they saw Blake, who immediately rushed to throw his clothes back on. Casey and Rainey finally returned minutes later, and everyone cheered at Rainey's DigiEgg. Casey and Rainey admired the raft, and then Leomon gathered together the shorn branches and lit them on fire for cooking fruit.

They sat down for their evening meal, talking jovially about the fun they'd had that day and how easy the raft-making process had turned out to be. Leomon was again thanked for his help many times over.

Afterwards, the children all prepared for bed. Leomon offered to sit up - just in case - but they said his paranoia was misplaced and that he should get some sleep. He resolved to sit up late, but to submit to sleep early in the morning.

As they lay down, thoughts ran through their heads.

_Why can't I stop worrying,_ Blake wondered. _I know that things will turn out alright. What's wrong?_

Casey was feigning sleep, but he, too, was deep in thought. _That Gennai character seemed a little shady, but trustable. Either way, we beat the evil, so I guess getting the Tags and Crests will open up the portal back to the Real World._

Rainey slept soundly, cradling his DigiEgg closely.

Leomon's eyes were closed, but his mind was clear, his ears were attentive, and his hand rested upon the hilt of his sword.

Becca and Meggy were talking - about boys, no less - over in the "girls corner".

Adam had decided to force himself to sleep, and had succeeded.

As for Cameron, his thoughts were a stormy sea. _I realize that we're supposed to stick together, but I just can't keep the thoughts of being on my own off my mind. I've realized that it's teamwork that's carried us this far, but I still feel an inexplicable urge to go off on my own. Maybe it was Blake's confession of his insecurity. I'll just have to wait and see what happens and act on that.

* * *

_

The children awoke with the sun's first rays, yawning and stretching and setting out breakfast. They ate quickly, ready to get on with their journey.

"Looks like we're ready to go," Blake said, looking over the raft, which Leomon had graciously pushed into the surf.

"I will set you on your way," Leomon said, "but I cannot go much further into the sea."

"Oh, Leomon!" Becca sighed. "I wish you'd come with us!"

"I wish I could," Leomon said, "but I have to stay here to protect File Island."

"I understand," Becca nodded. She was going to have trouble saying goodbye to the noble warrior.

"We're ready to get on our way!" Blake said, hoisting a sail they'd thrown together that morning.

"Ready to fulfill our destiny and return to our world," Casey agreed.

"Be careful, children," Leomon warned. "The journey across the sea may be long and perilous. I wish you luck on your trip to Server."

"Thanks Leomon," Adam smiled. "For everything."

With a final mighty shove, Leomon pushed the great raft holding fourteen passengers out into the sea. Blake unfurled the sail, which caught the wind, speeding the ship on - towards adventure.

* * *

Will the DigiDestined make it to Server safely? Find out next time!

* * *

A/N: Well, three days for a chapter . . . I gotta say, I impressed myself. Anyhoo, hooray!

A/N: After my comment about romances before the chapter, I was thinking during the actual writing of the chapter (almost threw some romance into this one, but decided against it). Turns out there were two significant romances within this group of seven about the time we were the agethe characters are in this story. Now, I have greatly changed many of the people to fit my story's needs, but I think the romances MIGHT work. I still want your input . . . so please give it.


	15. The Undersea Convenience Store

A/N: I am just in a writing frenzy lately! I was so excited to get up chapter thirteen by the seven month anniversary and happy at how great it turned out that I just can't stop writing like a maniac. Maybe I'll slow down while I write this chapter.

A/N: I think I'm going to include a special little article, hopefully not very big, entitled "The Creative Process". I'll start that next chapter, I suppose, and I'll simply tell of how my story and the characters in it got from where they were at the start to where they are today. Next chapter: Digimon: Digital Monster's Origins!

Now on to the reviews!

UKHoneyB: Honest mistake, partly my fault.

Yep, Courage/Love might work. And as for Hope/Light . . .

Yamimaru: WELCOME NEW REVIEWER! You've helped make my day! Yeah, it's Etemon, but trust me, he's love for Elvis is very underscored, if I write it in at all. Besides, he's only got about seven chapters anyway . . .

* * *

**Previously on Digimon: Digital Monsters**

This is Rainey speaking. We all met Gennai - or, at least, a holographic projection of him - and learned that the reason we haven't gone home yet is because we don't have special things called Tags and Crests. He told us of the continent of Server, where we'll find these special items. While everyone else - with the help of noble Leomon - began making a raft for the journey, my big brother and I set out with Prairiemon for Primary Village. We got there and Elecmon comforted me. Then he took me and gave me a DigiEgg - Lopmon's DigiEgg! We returned to the beach with the others, got a good night's sleep, and then got on our way! To Server!

* * *

**CHAPTER FIFTEEN**

**The Undersea Convenience Store**

The breeze rustled through Blake's hair as he stood on the front of their crude little vessel, staring out at the rolling waves before them. "We're making good time," he said to no one in particular. "File Island's already disappeared from view."

"Yep," Rainey agreed nearby. He was cradling his DigiEgg.

"When do you think that thing's gonna hatch?" Casey asked him.

"Soon, I hope," Rainey replied.

Suddenly the Egg began to glow in brilliant white light.

"How'd you do that?" Prairiemon asked, as the glowing egg began to take a new shape.

When the light died down, a little creature was sitting in Rainey's arms. It was kind of like a jellyfish, or, at least, its body felt that way: Kind of squishy and rubbery and wet. It was in the shape of a piece of candy, like a pale white Dot. It had cute, black, button eyes and a teeny mouth.

It looked up at Rainey. "Poyomon!"

"Guess its name is Poyomon!" Rainey repeated, tears of joy welling in his eyes. He lifted his partner and gave it a hug, cradling it close to him.

"Wow," Blake smiled. "That's so great. Your partner's back!"

"That's a relief," Gizamon added.

"And I'm sure he'll Digivolve to his In-Training form in no time," Casey put in.

"Yep," Rainey smiled, still holding his little Digimon close to him.

The others had been drawn by the bright light, and all congradulated Rainey for the hatching of Poyomon.

"It's so cute!" Becca exclaimed for the hundredth time as Adam carefully set out food for all of them.

Rainey just chuckled and gave Poyomon a hug. Poyomon was beginning to get a feel for being in the world and was eager to start playing on the raft, but it quickly turned its attention to the food.

"Hungry?" Rainey asked it.

"Poyo!" it said happily, bouncing onto an apple.

"Here," Rainey said, taking the apple from Poyomon. "Let me get this into little pieces."

Rainey spent the next few messy minutes breaking the apple into tiny pieces and feeding them to Poyomon. Poyomon quickly filled up on apples - surprisingly fast compared to the rest of the Digimon, but he was a newborn, after all - and began bouncing around to the raft's other passengers, bouncing on Digimon's heads and people's laps.

"So cute," Becca muttered again, taking a big bite out of a tropical orange fruit.

"I'm cute, aren't I?" Otamamon asked, worried her partner had lost interest in the tadpole Digimon.

"Of course you are!" Becca exclaimed, pulling Otamamon into a hug. "I'm just saying it about Poyomon because - well, he is too!"

Otamamon sighed, but accepted Becca's answer and went back to munching her food.

Becca felt a little bad for her partner. She was cute, but Poyomon was certainly the cutest Digimon on the ship. Becca didn't want to hurt her Digimon's feelings, but was afraid she had. She gave Otamamon a look, saw Otamamon munching away, and shrugged it off.

Save for Poyomon, Blake was the first to finish eating. He rose and returned to his position at the front of the great raft.

Blake's brow furrowed. The ship had been rising and falling on the waves peacefully, but the waves he now beheld not too far off seemed a bit too large.

"Guys," he muttered back to them, "you might want to hurry up. We might have a few bumps ahead of us."

All the children and Digimon quickly shoved the last pieces of fruit in their mouths and packed everything else up into the pack on Adam's back. Then they congregated around the front of the raft with Blake.

"Looks bad," Cameron interpreted simply.

The raft began to buck and sway on the angry waves. Soon the kids had to buckle down and hang onto the vines holding the logs of the raft together.

"This is bad!" Becca cried.

"I can help!" Otamamon called, leaping into the waves. "Otamamon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Tortomon!"

The great turtle appeared. "I've got you!" Tortomon's golden-scaled arms gripped the raft, steadying it on the great rolling waves.

"Thanks, Tortomon!" Becca said. This definitely made up for Otamamon not being the cutest.

"Yeah, that's all fine and good," Meggy agreed. "But what is _that?_"

Meggy pointed, and the children gasped. There was a wall of dark gray armored skin rushing towards them.

"It's a monster!" Becca screamed.

A giant mouth lined with sharp, dangerous teeth opened up. "Tortomon!" Becca wailed. "Help!"

Before Tortomon could do anything, a deep voice sounded from the monstrosity coming for them. "Tidal Wave!" A torrent of water rushed from the mouth, washing over the children. They screamed as they were pushed under the waves.

One by one, a child-Digimon pair would come up, choking and gasping and hanging onto a log of the used-to-be-raft.

Becca hacked up salty water as she hoisted Otamamon's head above the waves and grabbed onto the log. "Oh no!" she cried. The great mouth was open wide, rushing for the group of children.

"Here we go!" Adam cried despairingly as he and the rest of the DigiDestined were sucked into the gaping mouth, falling into darkness.

* * *

The stench was horrible, the darkness absolute. Meggy waved her hand in front of her face but didn't see a thing.

"Giza Destroyer!"

There was an orange flash as Gizamon's fire attack flashed out of his mouth onto the island-like ground the children and Digimon had landed on. It hit and crackled merrily, an instant fire. The light flickered around the cavern.

"Never thought I'd end up in some monster's stomach," Meggy sulked.

"This'll be really bad for my hair," Becca moaned. Blake rolled his eyes.

"Why'd he eat us?" Cameron wondered aloud, noticing the digestive juices surrounding what simply seemed to be an island in the monster's stomach, slightly membranous but mostly solid.

"I ate you because you are the DigiDestined!" the monster growled.

"Oh," Blake muttered, "he can hear us."

"Thanks, Sherlock," Casey muttered dryly.

"Thunder Claw!" Prairiemon cried. His large claws glowed with electricity, lighting the stomach more and giving the children flickering visions of the sides of the stomach beyond the firelight's reach.

"What's that?" Rainey asked, pointing up to a spot in the roof of the stomach that was being illuminated in flashes by Prairiemon's electricity.

"Too bad you'll never find out," the monster rumbled. The stomach began to shake violently and the digestive juices began to rise.

"He's going to digest us!" Cameron cried.

"I don't want to be eaten!" Becca wailed.

"Wait!" Rainey yelled. "Tell me! What _is _that?"

The rest of the DigiDestined followed his gaze to the roof of the Digimon's stomach.

"That's -" Blake gasped.

"A Black Gear!" Meggy finished for him. "Rabbitmon!"

"Got it! Rabbit Bomber!" The orange energy orb launched from Rabbitmon's mouth to the roof of the monstrosity's stomach, colliding with the Gear in a massive explosion. When the smoke cleared, the Gear was gone.

The trembling ceased and the digestive juices went back down. Then the great monster spoke.

"Children," he said in his deep voice. "I'm so sorry. I was posessed by the Black Gear sent out by Devimon."

"But how?" Blake asked. "Devimon gathered all the Black Gears to him!"

"Well, since this Gear was embedded inside me and was far out at sea, I suppose it didn't respond to his call."

"But wouldn't the Gear leave you alone since we destroyed Devimon?" Gizamon asked.

"Well, remember, Devimon didn't make the Gears; he just controlled them," Casey said.

"Devimon's been destroyed?" the creature asked.

"Yep," Rainey responded. He waggled his finger in front of Poyomon's face. "This little guy in my arms did it."

"Wow," the monster muttered. "I didn't know you DigiDestined had come to the Digital World finally, but I'm pleased to hear that you were able to defeat Devimon, as per the Prophecy. My name is Whamon, and I'd like to offer my services to you now that your raft is demolished."

"Thanks," Meggy replied. "Accepted."

"So, where are you headed to?" Whamon asked.

"We were going to the continent of Server," Blake replied. "To look for the Tags and Crests."

"Ah!" Whamon exclaimed. "Well, I can definitely take you to Server, but you won't find the Tags there."

"What?" Gizamon asked.

"Nope," Whamon replied. "They're in a different location. I'll take you there now."

With that, Whamon, the Champion-level Whale Digimon, plunged deeper into the ocean, blowing air out of his blow-hole to equalize for his passengers.

* * *

The journey was surprisingly short. It had only been about ten minutes when there was another rumbling in Whamon's stomach. The DigiDestined passengers cried out as they were shot into the air, through the blowhole on a geiser of water. They landed on Whamon's armored back.

"Thanks for the ride," Blake said, looking around.

They were in a cave, floating in a small lake. There was a short expanse of land right in front of Whamon and, in the middle of it, was what appeared to be a small convenience store.

"Where are we?" Becca asked.

"We're in an underwater cave," Whamon explained. "The Tags are in that store."

"No way," Rainey laughed. "That was easy."

"Let's go," Casey said. He and Prairiemon jumped down off Whamon into the ankle-deep sea water. The rest of the kids followed.

"This is a big cave for being underwater," Adam observed. "Wonder why it isn't flooded."

"Strange things happen in the DigiWorld," Kunemon said simply.

"This cave is awfully strange," Cameron agreed, nodding to the apparently vacant convenience store.

Suddenly, the ground began to shake. The DigiDestined cried out as the ground in front of them exploded outward, showering them with rubble.

"Rah!" a Digimon roared in the falling rubble.

It was about as tall as the squat convenience store beyond it. It was furry, the top half of its body colored with purple fur, the bottom off-white. It had a massive mouth and two glowing red eyes. Its back feet were tiny, with little black claws. The front feet were much bigger, the sharp black claws more dangerous. It had a few scraggly whiskers coming out from its nose, which was the most noticeable part about it. Instead of a traditional nose, this monster had a big, spinning drill.

"Oh, crap!" Adam growled.

"A mole monster?" Becca wondered.

"My name is Drimogemon!" the monster said. "My drill will destroy you meddling DigiDestined!"

"No way!" Cameron challenged. "DemiDevimon!"

"I'm on it!" his Digimon replied, hopping off his head and towards Drimogemon. "DemiDevimon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Vilemon!"

The bat-like creature had arrived, and flapped up above Drimogemon.

"Iron Drill Spin!" Drimogemon announced, his drill spinning. He waved it in the air, warding Vilemon off.

"Cameron!" Vilemon called. "He's got another Black Gear!"

"Man, when are we gonna get rid of those things?" Rabbitmon sighed.

"Destroy it!" Cameron directed.

"Will do! Nightmare Shocker!" Yellow, crackling electricity lanced out, hitting Drimogemon's spinning drill as if it were a lightning rod. Drimogemon screamed as lightning surged through his body, consequently destroying the Gear embedded in his back.

Drimogemon slumped, his eyes closed. Then he shook his head to clear his mind and opened his eyes, which were now normal green.

"Sorry, Drimogemon," Vilemon apologized, floating back down with the rest of the DigiDestined.

"It's okay," Drimogemon replied, wiping some sweat from his brow with his big, muddy paw. "I want to thank you for freeing me from the control of the Black Gear."

"Welcome," Becca replied sweetly.

"We just came down here to find the Tags," Casey continued.

"Oh," Drimogemon replied. "Well they're right in there." He pointed a big, black claw at the convenience store.

"Thanks," Casey said, walking towards the store, the others following him.

When they entered the store, they discovered that it was, indeed, vacant, and apparently had been for years. There was a thin coat of dust on the ground and shelves and merchandise. The counter had no attendant, the cash register open and empty. There was a bit of light, but most of the florescent lighting had either broken or simply wasn't turned on.

"This place is gross," Becca said, looking disapprovingly at the dirt.

"You can wait outside with Whamon," Casey sighed. Becca smiled and ran out with Otamamon. "The rest of us should split up, I think."

"Search the store in little kid-Digimon groups," Blake agreed with a smile. "Six groups in this little place should make the search a short one."

Poyomon squirmed in Rainey's hands, and then hopped out and scuttled down an aisle. "Poyomon!" Rainey cried concernedly, running after his Baby Digimon.

"Maybe someone should go with him," Meggy suggested. "In case this place isn't really vacant."

"Thanks for volunteering," Blake laughed, walking off in a different direction.

"Alright," Meggy sighed, rolling her eyes at Blake. She and Rabbitmon walked off after Rainey.

"We'd better start searching too," Casey directed, heading down another disorganized aisle.

"Heck, we don't even need this many search parties," Cameron observed. "Vilemon and I will go outside and hang with Becca."

"Sounds fine," Adam replied, deciding to check under the clerk's desk first. "Tell me if you see anything, Kunemon."

Cameron walked from the store, joining Becca at the water's edge, who was laughing and playing in the water with Otamamon.

* * *

"Poyomon, where are you?" Rainey whispered, creeping through a dark aisle and wondering where his little buddy hopped off to.

"Rainey, hold up!" he heard Meggy's voice behind him. He turned to see her and Rabbitmon walking slowly towards them, dodging cobwebs.

"There's no light back here," Rainey sighed aggrivatedly.

"Yeah, that's a slight problem," Meggy replied.

"It's not so dark we can't see," Rabbitmon pointed out.

"Just very dim," Rainey agreed. "And the shadows that the stuff on the shelf casts makes it extra hard to see."

"Poyo!"

"Hey!" Rainey cried at the sound. "That's Poyomon!"

The three ran forward a few yards, coming to a stop at the sight of the little creature.

Poyomon was on one of the shelves, sitting atop a small, golden box he'd found. "Poyo!" he chirped again.

"What have you got there?" Rainey asked. He picked up Poyomon and stepped back so Meggy could get the box. She picked it up, opened it, and gasped.

"Our search is over!"

"What?" Rainey asked, leaning over to see the box's contents. Sure enough, crammed inside it were seven Tags.

"That was easy," Rabbitmon said.

"Go, Poyomon!" Rainey cheered to the delight of his little Digimon.

"Guess we'd better go let the others know," Meggy suggested.

"Right!" Rainey said, laughing as he ran back down the aisle to get to the front of the store.

* * *

Cameron and Becca were both pleasantly surprised to see the others coming to them from the store. Meggy was holding an old, dusty, golden box that looked a bit newer than the other things he'd seen in the store.

"Well, that didn't take long," Cameron smiled.

"Nope," Blake replied.

"Thanks to Poyomon," Rainey said.

"Huh?" Becca wondered.

"Poyomon went straight to this box full of the Tags," Meggy explained.

"Well," Becca nodded. "That's good."

They all laughed, thankful for Poyomon.

"Here we go," Blake said, taking the box from Meggy's hands. He opened it and began to pass Tags around. They all slipped them over their heads.

"They're pretty," Becca said.

"Fits like a glove," Adam remarked.

"Now all we've got to do is put the Crests inside them," Casey said. "Whamon?"

"The Crests are on Server," Blake added.

"I know," Whamon said gently. "I'm more than happy to take you to Server. This time you can travel in my mouth."

"Thanks, Whamon," Blake replied as Whamon's monstrous mouth opened wide.

"Climb on in, children," Whamon instructed. They carefully entered his mouth.

"No offense, Whamon, but your tongue's a little gross," Becca said, screwing up her face in disgust.

"Sorry," Whamon apologized. He laughed. "It tickles a little."

"Now, how far away is Server?" Casey asked.

"It'll be quite a few hours' journey from here," Whamon replied. "I'll swim as fast as I can, but it'll be tomorrow morning before we get there."

Casey smiled. "Thanks, Whamon."

"Yeah," Prairiemon agreed. "Thanks for all your help."

"I'm more than happy to serve the DigiDestined."

With that, Whamon submerged, officially on his way to the continent of Server.

* * *

After a bumpy ride with Whamon, the DigiDestined have found the Tags, more or less without incident. Now it's on to the Crests. But what adventures will the continent of Server hold for the DigiDestined? Find out next time!

* * *

A/N: Wow . . . thought I'd hit a record three day chapter with chapter 14, but I outdid myself with this one: Two days! To be fair, this is probably my shortest chapter - only seven pages - and 14 was ten pages, but who's keeping score? Well . . . I am, actually . . . anyway, two days HOORAY!

A/N: I talked to Cameron last night (the real one) about the romances, and so that part of the story's developing a little, but still in the "I don't know if I should put this in" stage, so keep giving me feedback.


	16. Etemon's Dark Network

A/N: I am SOOOOOO SORRY! I haven't updated in forever because my computer experienced a severe major really bad crash and it took forever to get it fixed. All's well now so hopefully I can get back to a regular update schedule. Thanks to anyone who stuck with my story and if you haven't, I hope you find your way back. Uber thanks to UKHoneyB, who seems unconditionally to be on my side and in my favor. Thanks, UK.

-

To the reviews . . . er, review.

elementBLUE: Thank you for that awesome review! That really made my day! You're very encouraging and I'd be very pleased if you keep up with this story. Thanks a million!

-

**The Creative Process - Digimon: Digital Monster's Origins**

Well, I sat down one Saturday, anxiously anticipating the premier of Digimon: Digital Monsters on Fox Kids. I was so excited about it and I was completely blown away by it! Immediately I began to brainstorm my own adventure with me and my friends as the DigiDestined. Voila! Digimon: Digital Monsters was born!

-

**Previously on Digimon: Digital Monsters**

This is Meggy speaking. We were out on the sea when Rainey's DigiEgg hatched into cute little Poyomon! We all sat down for a meal together, but were actually eaten by a Digimon! We discovered that not all of Devimon's Black Gears were recalled, but we destroyed the one controlling the big guy, known as Whamon. Whamon took us to an undersea convenience store where Vilemon destroyed a Black Gear controlling Drimogemon. Poyomon found a box containing the Tags, and we all crowded back into Whamon's mouth for the journey to Server!

-

**CHAPTER SIXTEEN**

**Etemon's Dark Network**

After leaving the underwater convenience store, Whamon shot up to the surface. Becca's complaints about the stench were getting to him, so he surfaced and allowed them to climb out into the afternoon sun.

Whamon continued on his journey to Server all through the night, the children sleeping on top of his head.

"Wake up!" Whamon ordered gently the next morning. The sun's first rays were brightening the sky, revealing the huge desert continent of Server before them.

"Is that it?" Blake asked groggily, sitting up and rubbing his eyes.

"Yes," Whamon replied serenely, the exhaustion he was feeling not evident in his voice. "That is Server."

"Wake up, everybody!" Blake said, laughing happily. "It's Server! We're here!"

"We are?" Casey said, no hint of drowsiness in his voice.

"No, I was joking," Blake said sarcastically.

"Shut up," Casey chuckled, pushing Blake playfully.

"Hold on, Poyomon!" Rainey called, running after his little Digimon, who was scampering about. "We're not there yet."

"Man, Whamon!" Adam sighed. "That was a fast trip. I don't know how long it would have taken us if you hadn't shown up."

"Even if you did give us a bit of a scare when you first 'introduced yourself,'" Kunemon added.

They all shared a laugh at this, including Whamon, who sped onto the continent of Server.

"It's about time," Becca sighed. "I'm ready to get off Whamon and find a roof to sleep under!"

Whamon began to slow, preparing to let the children off on a rocky cliff overlooking the ocean that was sized just perfectly for the children to jump off Whamon's back and onto the new continent.

"We'll finally be able to get those Crests Gennai told us about," Casey sighed happily.

"Then . . . what? You'll go home?" Prairiemon asked.

Casey gave him a look. "Haven't you been paying attention? That's what Gennai said would happen when we found them."

Prairiemon was a bit taken aback by Casey's remark, but he nodded and turned his head away to hide his saddened eyes. He wasn't so sure that Casey was right about he and the others returning to their other world when they found the Crests. He wasn't so sure he wanted Casey to go back home . . .

"Alright!" Whamon said, coming alongside Server. "Time for you to get off!"

"Yay!" Becca cried, running and jumping to the ground, followed closely by Poyomon and Rainey. The others followed suit in a similar but more orderly manner. When they'd all deboarded, they turned back to face Whamon.

"Thank you, Whamon," Blake said. "It would've taken us _forever _without your help!"

"Yeah, you're a real life saver!" Meggy agreed.

"It was my pleasure, children," Whamon replied. With that, he turned and swam away into the ocean.

"Well," Blake sighed, turning around. "The continent of Sever."

Rabbitmon's nose twitched. "Hey! I smell something!"

Prairiemon nodded. "Me too!"

"What is it?" Meggy asked, bending down to Rabbitmon's height.

"I'm not sure," Rabbitmon replied. "It's some kind of Digimon village."

"Like the Yokomon village where we fought Meramon?" Meggy asked, thinking back to the first time her rabbit-like partner had become the fiery Lynxmon.

"This is a little different," Rabbitmon replied. "But close."  
"Do you know what it is?" Casey asked Prairiemon.

"That's the smell of Koromon," Prairiemon replied matter-of-factly. "I'm sure of it!"

"A Koromon village?" Casey asked.

"Yep," Prairiemon nodded.

"Koromon are supposed to be very friendly Digimon," Rabbitmon noted. "Maybe we should go to their village."

"Lead the way," Blake said. Rabbitmon nodded and began to walk towards the smell alongside Prairiemon.

"Come on, Poyomon," Rainey said, scooping Poyomon up into his arms and following the others.

-

It had only taken the children a few minutes to come in sight of a forest similar to the one covering the majority of File Island. Once they entered the forest, it was a short trek to the Koromon village. Before long, the children were standing on a ridge overlooking the Koromon village.

The village was very similar to the Yokomon village. There were many huts all around, looking like stemless acorns sticking up out of the ground with little arched doorways. In the center of all the huts was a very large building, similar in shape but much greater in size to all the huts. The buildings were all made of sticks. There were some small, round In-Training Digimon bouncing around the village.

"This the village?" Casey asked his partner.

"Yes," Prairiemon replied unsurely. "This is the village we smelled, but -"

"Those aren't Koromon," Rabbitmon finished for him.

"What do you mean?" Meggy asked, looking down at the little Digital Monsters.

They were small, like all the children's In-Training Digimon had been before Digivolution. They were covered in bluish-gray fur. They had cat-like mouths and squinty, red eyes. They had what appeared to be ears sticking out of each side of their head, but they ended in three fingers.

"If they aren't Koromon, then what are they?" Blake asked.

"I'm not sure," Prairiemon muttered.

"Well," Blake sighed. "There's only one way to find out!" With that, he and Gizamon began to walk confidently down into the village. The others followed close behind.

"Hi!" Blake cried out to one of the close-by Digimon as he waltzed into the village. "What's your name?"

The Digimon turned to look at him, wondering what he was. It looked him up and down, noticed Gizamon and the others following him, and then spoke. "Hello, visitor. I am a Pagumon, and this is the Pagumon village!"

"Pagumon," Blake called back to Prairiemon and Rabbitmon.

"So," Pagumon continued. "What brings you to our village?"

Blake smiled and sat down on the ground in front of Pagumon. "Me and my friends are the DigiDestined. We were told by Gennai that we were supposed to come to the continent of Server. We're looking for -"

"We're exploring," Casey interrupted, not wanting Blake to say too much to the unknown Digimon.

"Oh," Pagumon said, smiling. "You're the DigiDestined?"

"Yeah," Blake said cockily. "You've heard of us?"

"Only the legends," Pagumon replied. "But now allow me to go and inform the village chief of your arrival." Without another word, Pagumon turned and raced off to the large building in the middle of the village.

"Well, he seems nice enough," Blake said.

"Yeah," Gizamon agreed.

"Right," Casey said sarcastically. "Nice as a thornbush."

"What do you mean?" Becca asked. "He was very kind."

"He didn't seem sincere to me," Casey replied. "I'm not going to say that that Pagumon's evil or anything; I'm just saying we should always keep an eye out. We've had enough experience in the Digital World to tell us that anything's possible and everything's dangerous."

Prairiemon nodded.

"Don't be so uptight," Blake sighed, rolling his eyes. He looked around. Pagumon were going about their business, eyeing the newcomers occasionally but not really seeming to care that they'd arrived. "These Pagumon are nice enough."

Casey sighed with annoyance. Blake was a little too hard headed. _I'll just have to be careful for all of us._

They saw the same Pagumon they'd talked to come rushing out of the large hut back towards them. He bounced up to Blake with a smile. "Our chief is very happy you've decided to come here. We Pagumon will be pleased to make accomodations for you to stay here the night. We'll even have a feast to celebrate your arrival!"

"That sounds wonderful," Becca remarked. "But you know what sounds better? A shower!"

"Oh, of course," Pagumon replied. "We're eager to meet your every need. Even now, hot water is being drawn for you in the chief's hut."

"Hooray!" Becca cried, throwing up her hands in victory. "Finally, a real bath!"

"Haven't had one of those since we left camp," Meggy thought, realizing how much she'd missed it and all its luxuries.

Casey was startled by Meggy's statement. _Since we left camp . . . It's been so long! Days and days! Camp is well over with now, and our parents must be freaked! Well . . . maybe we can get back home when we find these Crests Gennai talked about._

"Right this way," Pagumon directed. "Your bath awaits you."

-

Becca sighed contentedly. This was the life. She and Otamamon were lying in a porcelain bathtub with steaming hot water relaxing them. She had strawberry scented liquid body soap and shampoo nearby, but for now she was just enjoying her bath.

"This is so wonderful, Otamamon," Becca said, her eyes closed.

"Yeah," Otamamon replied dreamily.

"I could just lie here all day," Becca said. She opened her eyes slowly -

- and screamed.

Outside the bathroom door, Blake, Casey, and Meggy were startled by Becca's scream. Blake and Gizamon ran to the door, followed closely by Casey, Meggy, Prairiemon, and Rabbitmon.

"Help!" Becca was screaming as her six friends stormed into the room. She looked up from the soapy tub and screamed again. "Blake! Casey! Get out!"

Blake, Casey, and their Digimon ran out in a panic, a bottle of strawberry scented shampoo flying after them.

Blake slammed the door behind him and slid down it, panting. "Jeez, she screams for help and then runs us out? Girls are so wierd!"

Inside the bathroom, Meggy was helping a shaky Becca get out of the bathtub.

"Here," Meggy said, holding up the fluffy white towel that had been provided by the Pagumon. "Wrap this around you."

Becca took it gratefully, pulling a soapy Otamamon into her arms and wiping her off as well.

"Now what's wrong?" Meggy asked.

"There," Becca pointed with a shaking hand. Meggy followed her gaze to the tiles beside the toilet.

"What is it?" Meggy asked, walking over and bending down to examine the tile.

"That wasn't there a minute ago!" Becca cried frantically. "There was a hole, and some red eyes!"

"Red eyes?" Meggy asked, getting down low to the ground and picking at the tile Becca was pointing to. Sure enough, it fell away from the wall easily. Behind was a dark hole.

"Rabbitmon, can you see anything in there?" Meggy asked her partner. Rabbitmon climbed forwards, sticking her snout in the small hole.

"It's too small for me to fit my head into to see anything," Rabbitmon replied. "But I did smell something familiar." Rabbitmon walked over to the tub and picked up the strawberry scented liquid body soap. She popped the top open and sniffed. "Yep. This is the smell."

"What do you mean?" Meggy wondered.

"I'm not sure if someone was peeking in on you, Becca," Rabbitmon explained. "But if they were, I'd bet they used some strawberry soap like this to disguise their scent."

"Oh," Becca gasped. "Well that's wierd. The Pagumon gave me that soap."

-

"Wow, this looks great!" Rainey exclaimed. "Right, Poyomon?"

"Poyomon!" Poyomon replied.

The rest of the DigiDestined had bathed without incident, and Becca had shaken off her fears, though she now eyed the Pagumon with some suspicion. The children had spent the rest of their day relaxing in the cool forest, and it was now dark. The Pagumon had set out the feast, carrying the food out on trays on top of their heads, holding the trays with their little arms.

"We're so pleased you've visited our village today," the chief Pagumon, a scratchy-voiced character, said. "We're honored by your prescence!"

The Pagumon began to eat, signalling the DigiDestined that they could eat, too. They all began to grab eagerly at different foods.

Rainey was holding out a piece of meat to Poyomon when something phenominal happened.

Poyomon's body was engulfed in brilliant white light, and after a few moments, the light was gone, replaced with none other than Kokomon.

"Kokomon!" Rainey exclaimed, pulling his In-Training level Digimon into his arms. "You're back!"

"Wow," Adam laughed. "Didn't expect that to happen."

The Pagumon all bounced forward. "Welcome, Kokomon! We're so happy you've Digivolved!"

Casey couldn't be sure, but when the Pagumon returned to their places, he thought he saw them sneer and exchange glances amongst themselves.

-

The children spent that night in the chief Pagumon's hut. They were all sound asleep when the door creaked slowly open.

The chief Pagumon bounced quietly into the room, followed by four other Pagumon. They all hopped stealthily around, checking each child and Digimon to make sure they were asleep. When all the children and Digimon were confirmed to be asleep, the chief Pagumon nodded. All the Pagumon formed around Rainey, who held Kokomon in his arms.

Wordlessly, the chief gave a command, and the Pagumon carefully climbed on Rainey's matress just enough to gently pry Kokomon from his arms. They slowly and carefully lifted Kokomon up on their arms and followed the chief out of the room. They continued out of the chief's hut and kept going out of the village.

As the Pagumon carried Kokomon away through the woods, he began to stir. He opened his black eyes slowly, sleepily. "Rainey?" he asked groggily, looking around. "Hey! Where are you taking me?"

The chief Pagumon turned around. "We're taking you away, to a place where your friends won't be able to help you!"

"You're kidnapping me?" Kokomon cried.

"Exactly." The Pagumon chief's voice was dripping with venom. He leapt into the air. "Poison Bubbles!"

Kokomon cried out as he was struck by the poisonous attack of Pagumon. The bubbles stung his skin, and Kokomon realized with horror that he couldn't move his body except his eyes and mouth.

The Pagumon chief laughed menacingly as he continued to lead the four other Pagumon down the dark forest pathway. They soon came to a waterfall.

"You're not going to throw me in there?" Kokomon asked weakly, staring at the pool of water. In his state, he wouldn't be able to save himself. He'd drown.

"Of course not," the Pagumon chief scoffed. He led the others back along a narrow passage, coming out behind the waterfall into a deep, dark cave. He directed the Pagumon over to a small, square cage. "Throw the DigiDestined's Digi-vermin into that cage. When they wake up in the morning, they'll never find him."

The Pagumon threw Kokomon unceremonially into the cage, closing the door sharply. They placed a padlock on the door.

"Now you'll never escape!" they cackled. With that, the five Pagumon hopped away back to their village.

"Rainey!" Kokomon wailed. He struggled to stand upright. "I have to escape! Rainey needs me!"

Kokomon stopped when he heard whispers coming from behind him. He turned slowly to see hundreds of sets of eyes peering at him through the darkness.

-

"Kokomon?" Rainey muttered as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

"What is it, Rainey?" Casey muttered, turning to his little brother.

Rainey looked around. Everyone was waking up. "Has anyone seen Kokomon?"

Meggy shook her head. "Wasn't he with you?"

"I went to sleep with him in my arms, but I woke up and he wasn't there," Rainey said. "Where could he be?"

"Maybe he went out to get a drink of water?" Blake asked.

"I dunno," Rainey said, standing and slipping into his shoes. He ran out of the room, followed closely by Casey, who was still fighting sleepiness.

Rainey ran down the hallway to the Pagumon chief's door, knocking on it hard. "Hello in there?"

The door opened slowly to a cheery-looking Pagumon chief.

"Pagumon," Rainey sobbed. "I can't find Kokomon anywhere!"

Pagumon looked startled. "You can't? Well that's odd!"

"Can you help me find him?" Rainey asked.

"Of course," Pagumon said. "You and your friends can split up and search around the village. There's a waterfall to the north; I'll take some Pagumon with me and head out there to see if Kokomon wandered off in that direction."

"Thank you, Pagumon," Rainey said. He and Casey walked back to their room.

_Perfect, _Pagumon thought to himself. _They're going to believe that Kokomon just vanished!_

-

"Kokomon?" Gizamon called worriedly.

He and Blake had left the village together, but after searching for a while had decided to split up to cover more ground. Unfortunately, Gizamon's superb sense of direction had gotten him completely lost.

"This is bad," Gizamon muttered. "How will I find my way back to the village?" As he said these words, a sound met his ears. It took him a moment to realize what the sound was.

It was a far away rushing sound; something fairly large going fairly fast. As he approached, racking his brain to find out what it could be, he suddenly remembered something the Pagumon had said. As the source of the sound came into view, Gizamon felt very good about himself.

"The waterfall!" Gizamon cried happily. "I knew it! The Pagumon said they'd be here; maybe they'll help me get back to their village."

Gizamon began walking around the rocky rim of the lake into which the water from the large waterfall spilled into. "Hello? Is anyone here?"

When no one answered, a puzzled Gizamon began to turn to head back into the forest, hopefully in the direction of the Pagumon village, when he noticed something: There was a cave behind the falling water.

"Cool," he muttered, his sense of adventure bristling. "I wonder what's inside?" Perhaps he could find the Pagumon or, better yet, Kokomon. He wandered around the edge of the lake and slipped behind the waterfall and into the cool, damp, dark cave behind.

"Hello?" he called out tentatively.

"Gizamon?" came a small, weak, tired, and familiar voice from the darkness.

"Kokomon?" Gizamon said, shocked. "Giza Destroyer!" With a burst of light, Gizamon shot a ball of flame from his mouth. It hit the rock at his feet and crackled merrily. It immediately began to go out, but Gizamon had more than enough time to be shocked and appalled by what he saw.

Before him stood a small steel cage the size of a small box, inside of which sat a battered-looking Kokomon. But the truly horrible thing was behind Kokomon. There were cages everywhere stuffed to the bursting point with little Digimon. They were slightly smaller than Kokomon, had round bodies, off-white skin, and big, sad green eyes. They had wide mouths and two waving ears that swept back from their bodies.

"Who are you?" Gizamon asked.

"We're Koromon," said one creature weakly. "We have a village not too far to the South of here, but a few days ago two tough Digimon came in with a horde of Pagumon. They rounded us up and threw us in these cages."

"You mean you've been packed in there that tight for days?" Gizamon asked in disbelief. "Well, I've got to get you out!"

"I don't think we can let you do that," came a scratchy voice from behind Gizamon.

Gizamon whipped around. "Who're you?"

"It's them!" the Koromon cried. "The tough Digimon that brought in the Pagumon and helped put us in these cages!"

They were short and covered in light purple fur, save for their round stomachs, which were covered in white fur. They had long ears sticking to the sky. They stood on their big, clawed hind legs, their arms crossed across their chests. They wore smug sneers, showing short, sharp teeth. They had small black noses on their short snouts and big, malicious green eyes.

"That's right!" one of them said. "We did lock up these worthless Koromon! We're the Gazimon, and we can't allow you to let these worthless Digimon out of their cages!"

"Oh, and you're going to stop me?" Gizamon challenged.

"Precisely. Electric Stun Blast!" Both Gazimon launched green balls of electricity at Gizamon, who cried out as they pushed him back, singing his skin. A jolt of pain ran through his entire body, leaving a tingling sensation that temporarily robbed him of all control over his muscles. He had been forced back against some of the Koromon's cages, denting them in and making an already uncomfortable situation unbearable for the unfortunate inhabitants of the cage.

"Sorry," grunted Gizamon, getting very painfully to his feet. He glared at the Gazimon. "You're going to pay for that! Giza -" He choked on his own words as he was slammed into again by another pair of electric attacks. He convulsed involuntarily at the shock spreading through his body. The Koromon in the now very cramped cage cried out involuntarily in pain.

"Heh," said the Gazimon. "Looks like you're too weak!"

"Pathetic," agreed the other. "Let's kill him quickly!"

And, together, they roared, "Electric Stun Blast!"

Gizamon thrashed about in pain before the chuckling rabbit Digimon. They continued to laugh as Gizamon cried out in a hoarse whisper, "Blake! Blake, where are you?"

-

"Has anybody seen Gizamon?" Blake asked. They had returned to the Pagumon village a short while ago, but the only one who hadn't returned to the village was Gizamon.

"No," Casey replied. "I thought he was with you."

"He was, but we split up to cover more ground."

"Great idea," Meggy muttered.

"Hey, I didn't know he was gonna get himself lost!" Blake cried defensively.

"What's that?" DemiDevimon asked from his perch on top of a Pagumon hut.

"What's what?" Cameron asked.

"That," DemiDevimon pointed with a talon.

The children and Digimon all looked to where DemiDevimon was pointing.

"Is that smoke?" Becca asked.

"Looks like steam," Blake answered.

"Let's go see what's causing it," Adam suggested. The children agreed (much to the chagrin of the Pagumon), and rushed off.

-

"Blake!" Gizamon whispered again, letting out an even weaker Giza Destroyer than before and recieving another sharp kick in the ribs from one of the Gazimon's clawed feet.

"Gizamon?" Blake cried in horror, appearing in front of the sheet of falling water.

"Who're you?" Gazimon asked.

"Someone who's suddenly very angry at you!" Blake growled. His Digivice came up in his right hand, glowing brightly.

"Let's teach them not to mistreat our Digimon!" Casey agreed, running up to Blake's side.

"Gizamon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Monochromon!"

"Prairiemon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Leomon!"

The Gazimon's demeanor changed instantly. They backed away from the large Champion Digimon, looking terrified.

"Tables have turned," Monochromon growled.

"Sorry 'bout the foul play," Gazimon apologized, his hands in the air. "We've been told we're a bit too rough. But, you know, no harm, no foul . . ."

"Volcanic Strike!"

"Fist of the Beast King!"

The Gazimon screamed and ran through the falling water to douse their burning fur.

"You poor Digimon!" Becca exclaimed. While Blake and Casey had been dealing with the Gazimon, the others had been releasing the Koromon, and Rainey now held Kokomon in his arms.

"Thank you!" the Koromon leader said to the DigiDestined. "If there's ever anything you need, you can come by the village." With that, he led the Koromon away.

"It's great to see you reunited with Kokomon," Casey smiled sincerely, looking with fondness to his baby brother.

Suddenly, the cave shook with a loud and unexpected noise. Someone had struck an electric guitar turned to its highest volume.

"Ah!" the DigiDestined cried.

"Turn it off!" Kokomon wailed.

As the chord died down, the water from the waterfall slowly dissipated. In seconds, the waterfall was history; in its place was an open cave mouth. Standing outside the cave were the harassed looking Gazimon, now looking strangely smug. There was a small trailer with two Monochromon hitched to the front, panting slightly.

And, standing between the singed Gazimon was a large, orange-furred monkey. He was thin, with an orange stomach. He had a wide, grinning mouth. There was a small yellow Monzaemon plush hanging from his right hip. His hair was pointy and he had big black sunglasses. He was holding an electric guitar, its chord running back through the door of the trailer. He pulled out a microphone and said into it, his voice booming to the DigiDestined, "Hello, children! I am the soon-to-be rock star Digimon sensation, Etemon! You've attacked my Gazimon friends here, and that's just not acceptable!"

"You're challenging us?" Blake asked haughtily. "We're ready for you!" Monochromon and Leomon stepped forward.

"I don't think so," Etemon replied. He pointed to his trailer. There was a chord running from the back of his trailer and stretching through the trees and out of sight. "Let me explain something to you. I am Etemon. I draw power from my Dark Network."

"Dark Network?" Cameron asked.

"That's right," Etemon replied boastfully. "There are thick chords running the length of Server connected to my Dark Network. They allow me an all-access, back stage pass to everything going on around Server! In short, I rule Server, and draw my strength from my Dark Network."

"You're a goof," Casey muttered.

"Really?" Etemon laughed. "Try this on for size! Concert Crush!" He struck the guitar's chords aggressively, sending a visible soundwave out. The wave hit the DigiDestined and its effect was immediate. In a flash of light, Monochromon and Leomon had been replaced by Gizamon and Prairiemon, both looking exhausted.

"Unh," Rabbitmon moaned. "All my energy's been zapped!"

"No way!" Meggy cried. "Come on, you have to be okay!"

"I'm fine, just . . . weak!"

"How about this," Etemon laughed. "Goodbye!" With another deafening chord, a soundwave erupted towards the children. It collided with the cliff face and, as the kids ran into the safety of the inner cave, the cave opening crumbled down. When the rumbling of falling rocks died down, the cave was completely cut off.

"Well, this is just peachy," Casey grumbled. "We're trapped in here. Our Digimon are too weak to Digivolve and get us out, and we haven't got enough food to energize them."

"Sorry," Prairiemon apologized, as if it was his fault.

"The only thing we can do is keep going," Blake muttered, shuffling off into the blackness of the cave. "Hopefully there's another exit."

Blake's hopes were misplaced, it seemed. After a few minutes of walking, the kids came to a wall.

"Looks like we're boxed in no matter how we look at it," Meggy grumbled.

"Whoa!" Blake cried. His Tag began to glow brilliantly golden and floated, seemingly with a will its own, into the air, pulling on the chain around Blake's neck and pulling him toward the wall. "What's going on?"

"It must be sensing your Crest!" Cameron exclaimed.

Blake walked right to the wall. The Tag floated in front of the wall, but nothing else happened.

"Looks like we can't get to the Crest," Blake said disappointedly. He was curious to find out what his Crest was and, well, basically just what a Crest was.

But then, to everyone's shock, the entire wall began to glow.

"What's going on?" Blake muttered. The glowing wall began to shrink until it was a size that would fit perfectly into the slot in the Tag. The golden glow died down and the Crest appeared. It floated to Blake's outstretched Tag and slid into it.

"Your Crest!" Gizamon said excitedly.

"Yeah!" Blake exclaimed, gazing intently at the stylized object now settled snugly into his Tag.

It was light orange and had a design in the middle. The design was several rings, around which eight triangles pointed outward. Four triangles were large, pointing up, down, left, and right, and four were small, pointing diagonally between the larger four. The symbol was a darker orange and resembled a sun. There was stylized writing on the side of the Crest that read, "The Crest of Courage".

"The Crest of Courage," Blake read aloud for all to hear. "Amazing."

"That's great!" Gizamon agreed.

"For two reasons," Meggy added, motioning to where the wall had been. Now, instead of a dark cave wall, they stood in a cave opening, looking out at nothing but desert as far as the eye could see.

"Looks a little hot," Adam muttered.

"Better than being trapped in a cave," Kunemon retorted.

"Don't worry, guys," Blake smiled, feeling rejuvenated by the finding of his, the first, Crest. "We'll be okay! Now that we've got the Crest, we're unstoppable!"

"How do you figure that?" Casey asked.

"Yeah, don't let that 'courage' go to your head," Adam cautioned.

"Don't worry," Blake replied dismissively. "Gennai said the Crests would let our Digimon become even stronger. 'A new level of power', or something like that. So, now that I've got mine, we'll be okay. Gizamon can protect us."

"Unless we meet Etemon again," Becca muttered bitterly. "He can drain our Digimon's energy."

"No way!" Blake said. "Not against the power of a Crest."

"You don't even know what it does!" Rainey reminded him.

"It makes us stronger!" Blake explained impatiently. "Even Etemon's Concert Crush can't stop us now!"

"I hope you're right about that," Cameron muttered darkly.

"Of course I am!" Blake reassured her. "Come on! We'll never get anywhere just standing here talking!"

He and Gizamon ran off toward the desert. The others exchanged looks and followed.

"Let's go, Gizamon!" Blake laughed, rushing forward. "Etemon! You don't scare me!"  
"That's right!" Gizamon agreed happily, running alongside him.

"Woohoo!" Blake cried. "Time to go get the other Crests!"

-

The DigiDestined have met and narrowly escaped a new enemy, Etemon. Will the DigiDestined truly be able to fend him off? Find out in the next Digimon: Digital Monsters!


	17. Dark Digivolve

A/N: Looks like I still have some good, loyal readers. Thank goodness.

-

Reviews:

Yamimaru: Well, Blake's different than Taichi.

elementBLUE: I'm happy you like the length of my chapters. If you like REALLY long chapters, read Zero Two: A Revision by Ultra Sonikku. I'm also pleased you seem to be making an emotional connection to the kids, and especially the Digimon (I fear I often leave them on the side for nothing but fighting). I'm trying to make deep, loveable characters and your review lets me know that I'm at least headed in close to the right direction. Glad you found the bath scene funny, 'cause I know I laughed while writing it. Enjoy the scene in Etemon's trailer and the soccer game in this chapter. And I'm happy you like Etemon; so many people really hate him, but I liked him, too.

UK: Dub or sub Cody? Anyways, I guess the person he most sounds like is . . . Dub Tai, with a hint of Dub Takato. But let your imagination run wild, because Casey's voice is still very different from theirs. Again, your Crest predictions are very good. Did you get a copy of my story outline?

-

**The Creative Process - The DigiDestined**

The DigiDestined have come a long way since the original concept of this series and continue to change and improve even today. The seven DigiDestined children you've been adventuring with in this story weren't always the same; the radical changes I've made to the story did break away from what it was originally, but only increased the value of the current story. I'm now working with people I associate with much more closely than the originals and are, therefore, able to write much better and more convincingly.

This series was dreamed up before I was old enough to be a part of my church's youth group, and the DigiDestined were chosen accordingly. At the time of this story's origins, my closest friends were from school. I chose some of my favorite school friends.

The names of the original seven DigiDestined were: Blake, Adam, Caitlyn, Taylor, Amelia, Matt, and Austin. The names of the current DigiDestined are: Blake, Casey, Meggy, Cameron, Becca, Adam, and Rainey. As you can see, the only two DigiDestined that have not changed are Blake (myself) and Adam, and Adam's position in the group has changed. Also, Austin was a fictional character, and Rainey is very real (I sat beside him at lunch today). So, the characters have made the switch from school friends (none of whom have really stayed friends with me) to youth group friends, all of whom are like my brothers and sisters.

-

**Previously on Digimon: Digital Monsters**

This is Cameron speaking. We finally made it to the Continent of Server, but when we met the seemingly friendly Pagumon, we never dreamed they'd kidnap Rainey's partner. Gizamon found Kokomon and learned that the Koromon trapped with Kokomon had been captured by the Pagumon and two tough Digimon. Two Gazimon showed up and beat up Gizamon. We all got there, set the Koromon free, and taught the Gazimon a lesson. Etemon, a wannabe rock star, stopping our Digimon from Digivolving and trapped us in a cave. We thought we were goners but Blake's Tag found his Crest to be the back wall of the cave. We were able to escape from the cave and Blake got his Crest, the Crest of Courage!

-

**CHAPTER SEVENTEEN**

**Dark Digivolve**

Blake stared proudly at his brand new Crest, the Crest of Courage. He was more than ready to wipe the floor with Etemon. First, though, he'd have to get Gizamon to Digivolve.

"Hey, Gizamon," Blake said, nudging his partner gently. "You ready to Digivolve?"

"When the next evil Digimon shows up!" Gizamon said cheerily. "Not many Digimon ever get to Digivolve to Ultimate!"

"So that's what the new level's called? Ultimate?"

"That's right. Monzaemon and Andromon, from File Island, are Ultimates, and I think Etemon is, too."

"Etemon's a push-over," Blake snorted. He then frowned. "We beat Monzaemon and Andromon really easily, though. I thought Ultimates were supposed to be a lot stronger than Champions."

Cameron chose that moment to enter the conversation. "Well, we didn't actually beat them."

"What?" Blake asked.

"Don't you remember?" Cameron asked. "All we did was free them from the Black Gears."

"We didn't even scratch the Digimon," DemiDevimon agreed.

"That's right," Blake realized. "They were really tough! So, Gizamon, you ready to become Ultimate?"

"Yeah!"

"Alright," Blake smiled. "I'm going to do everything I can to help you Digivolve."

"How do you plan to do that?" Cameron asked.

"Easy," Blake replied. "Just think of ways we help our Digimon Digivolve to Champion, and multiply it to fit an Ultimate's standards."

"Like what?" Gizamon asked.

"Well," Blake muttered. He thought for a moment before saying, "You need food in your stomach to have Digivolution energy, so you can eat!"

"Good, I was getting hungry," Gizamon replied happily.

Blake jogged to Adam, got the backpack with the food in it, and began to unload its contents before Gizamon.

"Dig in!" Blake directed.

Gizamon happily obliged, shovelling food pell-mell into his mouth (some of the candy bars still in their wrappers).

"Hey!" Adam cried when he noticed Gizamon eating the food. He ran towards him. "What are you doing?"

"He's eating," Blake translated Gizamon's muffled answer.

"Oh, I didn't notice," Adam said sarcastically. "I mean why is he eating our food? We haven't decided to eat yet! We haven't rationed out a certain amount for each person! We haven't made sure we'll have enough for a few more meals!"

"He's gotta have food to Digivolve," Blake explained casually.

"And he can have it when we ration out his portion," Adam replied evenly. "In case you haven't noticed, we're in the middle of a _desert_! We can't just pick some more fruit off the trees! There _are no _trees!"

"What if we go into another forest?" Blake asked nonchallantly.

"Okay, first, our last forest experience turned out really bad," Adam said, thinking back to the previous day's fiasco in a Koromon village overrun by Pagumon. "Second, that might be the only forest on this entire continent. I'd like to make sure there is one before we let Gizamon eat all of our food! Can you please just explain why he's eating the food?"

"So he can Digivolve to his Ultimate level. I figure since he has to have enough food to Digivolve to Champion, he'll have to have even more food to get to Ultimate."

"We don't need him to Digivolve now."

"But it'd be good for him to be ready to in case he does need to in the near future."

Adam sighed in resignation. "Just save some for us." He walked back to where everyone else was, followed by Cameron.

Gizamon belched. "This is so delicious!"

"Good, 'cause you're gonna need a lot of it to Digivolve." Blake sat down next to Gizamon on the hot desert sand.

Gizamon continued to feast, but after a few minutes, began to slow. Blake took immediate notice.

"What's wrong?" Blake asked.

"Getting full," Gizamon replied, clutching his stomach with one claw for emphasis.

"Aw, come on," Blake pressed. "You'll need more than that to have energy to Digivolve to Ultimate."

"Okay," Gizamon said, not quite agreeing but not wanting to argue. He began again to eat, albeit at a slower pace. After another few minutes, though, he stopped.

"Gizamon?" Blake said.

"Isn't this enough?" Gizamon asked. HIs stomach was very full.

"Come on, Gizamon!" Blake cried. "You have to eat more!"

Gizamon reluctantly took another bite of fruit under Blake's watchful gaze, very slowly chewed and, with effort, swallowed. As soon as he had finished with the very small bite of fruit, he threw up his claws in protest. "I can't eat anymore!"

"Of course you can!" Blake encouraged.

"I really can't!"

"But you have to!" Blake exclaimed. "You want to get to Ultimate, don't you?"

"Well . . . yeah," Gizamon said grudgingly, though he wasn't quite sure he did if it meant this much physical strain.

"Then eat!" Blake said, ignoring the obvious reluctance in his partner's voice.

Gizamon sighed. He didn't want to keep eating, but he _really _didn't want to disappoint Blake. He began to eat again, praying that his body could take it.

When he stopped again, assuring Blake he couldn't handle any more, Blake exploded.

"Come _on_! If you can't conquer a piece of fruit, think about what Etemon will do to you!"

"But -"

"Fine! If you don't _want _to Digivolve!" Blake began to pack up the food.

"No, I do!" Gizamon said earnestly. He took a feeble bite and cringed as his stomach protested angrily.

Blake looked stern. Gizamon pointed to his stomach, which was very noticeably larger than when he'd begun eating.

"Fine, you can stop," Blake conceded grumpily.

Gizamon lay down, thankful for the chance to rest. Blake took the supply back to the others.

"Come on, Blake," Adam said, accepting the backpack from Blake's outstretched hand. "Go a little easier on him."

"Hey, I'm just pushing him in the right direction. Once he Digivolves, he'll thank me." Blake's tone told everyone that he had no more to discuss on the matter, and he returned to Gizamon's side.

"Gizamon looks really sick," Becca observed worriedly.

"I know I would be too," Otamamon muttered. "I couldn't even eat half that food!"

"He'll be okay after a while, I'm sure," Casey said. "Blake stopped just in time, or else Gizamon probably would have thrown up all over him."

"Yuck!" Becca, Meggy, Otamamon, and Rabbitmon said in unison.

"We should keep moving," Casey thought aloud. "We need to find the other six Crests. We'll give Gizamon some time to rest and then move out."

"We could split up," Cameron muttered tentatively.

"I dunno," Meggy replied. "I think we should always stick together."

"After the way Etemon kicked our butts last time, we have to stay together," Kunemon agreed gravely.

"And as much as I hate to admit it, Blake's Crest really does mean he's our best bet at beating Etemon," Casey added reluctantly.

"Even if he is being a big jerk about it," Meggy said darkly, glaring momentarily at Blake.

"So," Casey concluded, "we'll stay here for a while longer, eat lunch, and then move on."

-

They ate a meager lunch (except Gizamon; the others talked Blake out of forcing him to eat), and began walking again. They had been walking no more than a few minutes (Gizamon lagging behind and clutching his stomach under Blake's reproachful glare) when Adam's Tag lifted into the air, glowing golden and pulling him in the direction they'd been going.

"Your Crest must be nearby!" Kunemon exclaimed happily.

"Yeah!"

"I wonder what it could be?" Otamamon asked.

"Only one way to find out!" Adam cheered. He pulled Kunemon up onto his shoulder and set off at a brisk pace.

The others sped up to stay with him (even Gizamon, with difficulty), and all were shocked when Rainey, smiling and laughing with the rest, plummeted face-first into the firm desert sand.

They all stopped and gaped at Rainey's prostrate form. "What happened?" Casey cried as he and Kokomon rushed to help Rainey up.

"I dunno," Rainey said, his voice muffled by the sand in his mouth. He looked down at his feet. He'd tripped over -

"What's a big, thick, black cable doing in the middle of the desert?" Cameron asked, untangling Rainey's foot and lifting the heavy cable for a better view. It appeared to have been at least partially covered in desert sand.

"Doesn't make any sense to me," DemiDevimon chirped.

"Well, if we weren't going after Mouse's Crest, I'd say follow it and see where it goes, but, you know," Blake said.

"Right," Adam agreed. "We can leave the mystery of the big black cable for later. Onto the task at hand!"

-

Gazimon looked up when he heard a beeping alert. "Hm . . . looks like something's tripped the Dark Network . . ."

He turned in his swivel chair from his bank of monitors to the rest of the dimly lit trailer's interior.

"Lord Etemon?" Gazimon called. "We have something in sector 001 Alpha."

Etemon, who'd been tuning his favorted red electric guitar, turned darkly to stare through his thick, dark sunglasses at his Rookie-level servant. "What is it?"

"Probably nothing, sir," Gizamon replied, wondering why he'd disturbed his master at all.

Apparently the feeling was mutual. "If it is nothing, why do you feel the need to disturb my beautiful music-making?"

"Sorry, Master!" Gazimon apologized quickly, but Etemon wasn't through.

"Do you not realize how difficult it is to become a celebrated superstar? It doesn't just happen over night! The magic must culminate! And it's in _precious moments _like this one that that magic is at its strongest!"

"Again, my apologies, sir -"

"Grovel at my feet!" Etemon commanded, pointing to his huge, furry toes.

"Uh . . ." Gazimon stuttered. "Um . . . W - what?"

"You disturbed my magic! You must atone! _Grovel_!"

"Er . . ." Gazimon looked around nervously, knelt slowly, and bowed at Etemon's feet. "I'm sorry, Master. I - uh - grovel at your feet."

Etemon stared disgustedly at the rabbit Digimon. "Fine! Get up, you disgusting creature!"

Gazimon did so quickly. "Check out the video. Make sure the whatever-it-was didn't break the Dark Network cable." With that order, Etemon returned to his guitar, trying to remember what he'd been working on before being rudely interrupted.

Gazimon cursed Etemon under his breath, rewinding the surveilance tape of 001 Alpha to thirty seconds prior to the disturbance.

As he watched, Gazimon saw seven children and seven Digimon waltz across the screen. He gaped in disbelief. Etemon had assured his Gazimon servants that he'd dealt with the children once and for all the previous day, but there they were, the smallest tripping over the cable linking the area to Etemon's Dark Network, the one with eye-lenses inspecting the Network cable.

"Lord Etemon!" Gazimon cried urgently.

"What?" Etemon roared, but he could sense the insistance in Gazimon's voice.

"The - the children!" Gazimon cried.

Etemon waved his hand dismissively. "Quit wasting my time."

"No, sir!" Gazimon said beseechingly. "I'm telling you, it really is those kids!"

Muttering indignantly under his breath, Etemon moved sulkily to peer over Gazimon's swivel chair.

"_What?_" Etemon roared in outrage. "Why didn't you tell me, Gazimon!"

"What?" Gazimon cried. "I - I did tell you!"

"No you didn't!" Etemon chastised. "You were wasting your time on the floor!"

"I - but - you told me to -"

"Shut up!" Etemon yelled, smacking Gazimon from the seat and into the wall. He sat in the now vacant seat.

Pressing a communication link button, Etemon said, "Gazimon? Gazimon, are you there?"

The intercom crackled a bit and a Gazimon's voice replied, "This is sector 002 Alpha. What are your orders, Lord Etemon?"

"Yes, the DigiDestined children are headed your way!"

"What? I thought they were dead -"

"_So did I!_" Etemon exploded. "Just watch for them. If they come inside your post, try to keep them there. I think I have someone special in a nearby are that will take care of them for good!"

"Perfect, Master. I'll inform my partner and we won't allow the DigiDestined to leave the facility."

"Thank you, Gazimon," Etemon replied, killing the com link.

He leaned back in his swivel chair. "Yes, I have the perfect Digimon to destroy the DigiBrats," Etemon chuckled to himself. "Their Digimon will never be able to defeat my seasoned warrior in battle. Their doom is assured!"

-

"Your Crest must be inside," Kunemon suggested.

They had followed the pull of Adam's Tag. It had led them to a large stone building in the middle of the desert.

"Is this the Roman Colisseum?" Cameron wondered, for the stone building looked exactly as history books and videos suggested it had back in its prime.

"Who cares?" Blake muttered. "If the Crest is in there then it doesn't matter if it's a Colisseum or a cardboard box; we have to get it either way. Let's go."

Blake marched inside without waiting for the opinion of the others.

The inside was much more modern. It was dim, steel, and cool. There were many doors. Adam's Tag was still glowing, but no longer pulling him, so they began to search each room.

"Look, a refrigerator!" Rainey exclaimed when he'd opened the third door on the left.

"It's full of food!" Kokomon cried happily.

"Let me fill up the backpack," Casey said to Adam. "You keep searching for your Crest."

"Right," Adam agreed, handing the bag to Casey.

"Come on, Mouse," Blake called from the end of the hall. "Let's keep looking!"

Adam and Kunemon joined Blake and Gizamon at the end of the hall and continued the search, walking out of sight.

While Casey, Becca, Meggy, and their Digimon filled the pack (Cameron was contemplating the desert colisseum's origins), Rainey and Kokomon ran to another room and made yet another discovery.

"Hey guys!" Rainey said excitedly as he reappeared in the doorway. "Lookit what we found!"

He stepped back to reveal Kokomon carrying a sphere, on top of his head and between his three horns, with white and black hexagons making up its surface.

"A soccer ball!" Meggy exclaimed. She went to Kokomon and took the ball in her hands. "I love soccer!"

"What's soccer?" Rabbitmon asked.

"It's a game I played back home," Meggy replied. "I'd bet the colisseum arena's big enough for me to teach you how to play. We'll go there once the backpack is full."

"Good idea!" Becca exclaimed. "It'll be good to just have fun without being interrupted by wannabe rock-star monkeys."

"Definitely," Otamamon replied.

-

"Okay, I won't go into all the details about positions and strategy and all, so basically there are two competing teams. Each team tries to kick the ball into the other team's goal. You can't use your hands unless you're the goalie - the one guarding your team's goal - and you just kick it like this." Meggy gave the soccer ball a gentle kick and sent it rolling gently towards a goal.

The children had come to the arena of the colisseum to see that it had apparently been designed for soccer. The ground was firm sand with all the appropriate lines, and there were two goals on each end of the rectangular field.

"So let's divide into two teams of five," Meggy instructed. "Rabbitmon, Kokomon, Rainey, and Otamamon with me against Becca, Casey, Prairiemon, Cameron, and DemiDevimon. My team will guard that goal -" she pointed to the far goal, "- and, as long as you don't pop the ball with your claws, this'll be a lot of fun."

"Which position doesn't require much running?" Becca asked Casey airily.

"You can be goalie," Casey said, pointing to the nearby goal.

"Yeah, Otamamon, you be our goalie," Meggy said. "Since you don't have feet," she added.

Meggy walked to the center of the field with the ball in her hands. All but Becca and Otamamon crowded round, prepared to begin. She set the ball down and stepped back to join her teammates.

"Alright," Meggy said. "We'll go on the defensive first. Go!"

Casey broke immediately into a sprint straight for the ball as Meggy backpedaled as quickly as possible. Casey began to dribble down the field, Prairiemon behind him, as Becca examined her nails from her post at the goal.

"Bring it on, Casey!" Meggy taunted, facing off against him. She was wary of Casey's athleticism, but, since he didn't play soccer competitively like she did, she expected to have an advantage.

Rainey moved up to Meggy's right as Casey shot past Meggy. It took him a moment to realize that Meggy had stripped the ball from him and passed it to Rainey and that his little brother was already pushing down the field, Meggy close by for support.

Casey turned on a dime, racing after his brother and catching up with him alarmingly fast.

"Rainey!" Meggy cried.

Rainey's head whipped around in time to notice Casey. Rainey kicked the ball to his left, hoping Meggy would get it; it bounced off of Casey's shoe and spiraled into the air.

"Got it!" Meggy cried.

"Nope!" DemiDevimon said, snatching the ball from mid-air and carrying it in the air towards the goal Otamamon was guarding. "_I _got it!"

"Hey!" Rabbitmon yelled. "No cheating! Rabbit Bomber!" Rabbitmon's glowing energy attack smashed into DemiDevimon, who dropped the ball with a yell.

"It's mine!" Cameron cried triumphantly. He brought the ball under his control with two kicks and began dribbling down the field.

Kokomon bounced forward with lighting speed, knocking into the ball and removing it from Cameron's control.

"Kokomon!" Rainey cried, running to comfort the stunned little Digimon.

"Ha! Ball's mine!" Meggy cried, taking the ball back towards the opposing goal.

"I'll stop you!" Prairiemon called, but Rabbitmon promptly tackled him to the sand.

"Hyah!" Casey yelled, slide-tackling towards Meggy; she kicked the ball over his legs and jumped lightly after it. She continued her sprint down the field, unopposed.

"Here it comes!" Meggy cried, laughing aggressively. The ball rocketed forward, straight past Becca, ruffling her hair - she was too busy scrutinizing her nails to notice - and flying straight into the goal.

"Yes!" Meggy cried, leaping into the air triumphantly.

"Becca!" Casey wailed. "What are you doing?"

"I'm busy!" Becca replied shortly, not averting her gaze from her nails.

"Yeah, she has to look fantastic before she moves again, remember, Casey?" Cameron joked, nudging Casey with his elbow.

"Hey!" Becca yelled indignantly.

"Come on, guys," Meggy said. "Chill out. It's your ball."

She kicked the ball to Casey. "I'm gonna blow past you this time!" he said.

"I'll enjoy watching you try."

"Hey! What are you doing!" They all turned at this angry exclaimation to see black glaring at them from high up in the stands, with Adam, Kunemon, and Gizamon standing nervously behind him.

He began to make his way towards them. Meggy put her hands on her hips and walked out to meet him. Everyone else crowded round center field to watch the argument, save for Gizamon, who was still struggling down the steps, his stomach rumbling threateningly.

"We're playing soccer," Meggy answered Blake's question. Her voice was made to sound nonchalant, but everyone knew they were fighting words.

"At a time like this?" Blake said, his voice rising in volume as he spoke.

"Yeah, we're in a real warzone," Meggy snorted sarcastically.

"You were supposed to help look for Mouse's Crest -" Blake pointed to Adam's still glowing Tag, "- and you were supposed to come immediately after you'd gotten the food!"

A Gazimon watched in the shadows as the DigiDestined argued. He smiled maliciously, held a comm device up to his mouth, and said, "Lord Etemon, the children are in place."

"Perfect!"

As Blake and Meggy argued, Rabbitmon noticed something. There were two massive jumbo-trons on either side of the stands that were now, seemingly on their own and with no provocation, coming on.

"What's that?" she asked to no one in particular, pointing to the fuzzy orange shape on the screens that was slowly coming into focus.

Blake and Meggy stopped screaming at each other, and everyone looked at one of the two screens (even Gizamon, though he'd just now made it to the bottom steps and was feeling rather queasy).

Etemon's face came into focus, and the DigiDestined gasped.

"Hello, DigiDestined, and welcome to my colisseum," Etemon said as though he were welcoming someone very famous into his home. He spread his arms wide in a welcoming gesture.

"This is your colisseum?" Blake yelled, outraged.

"Of course," Etemon replied with a sly smirk. "Why don't you stay for a while?"

"I'd rather not!" Rainey sneered.

"Oh, but I insist!" Etemon said menacingly, pressing a button the DigiDestined could not see.

Apparently in response to said button, the soccer goals moved alarmingly quickly towards the DigiDestined. Before any of them could react, they were trapped within the soccer goals, in a makeshift cage.

"You planned this?" Meggy raged at Etemon.

"Well, I don't want to brag," Etemon said mockingly. He noticed Prairiemon preparing to slice the net with his claws. "I wouldn't do that if I were you."

"Oh?" Casey challenged. "And why not?"

"Well," Etemon muttered, examining his fingernails much like Becca had been minutes ago, "first of all, the net can't be broken by any but the strongest Digimon. Second, if you touch the net, you'll be fried by 20,000 volts."

"How do we know you're not just bluffing?" Casey asked.

Etemon chuckled. "Honestly, you don't. But is that a risk you're willing to make cute little Prairiemon take?"

Casey glared at his Ultimate-level antagonist defiantly, but everyone knew that he would not risk his Digimon's safety like that. No one would.

"I'm a good host," Etemon continued. "I wouldn't insist on you staying unless I had some entertainment planned."

"What are you getting at, Etemon?" Cameron yelled.

"Oh, you'll see." He shifted his gaze to Gizamon, who was now the only un-caged of the group, having been at the bottome of the stairs when the goals moved in. "See? We already have our first volunteer!"

"Gizamon!" Blake cried.

"We have to get out of this cage!" Becca wailed.

"Working on it!" Casey said in an urgent whisper. "We'll tunnel out. Apparently there's nothing else we really can do."

"I can dig!" Prairiemon said, holding up his claws. He began to shovel out dirt surprisingly fast. Rabbitmon joined him, rapidly scooping with her little paws.

"And in this corner," Etemon imitated a boxing announcer, "we have the undefeated champion!" He pressed another button and a few seconds of taped clapping and cheering played.

With the press of yet another button, a large stone door at the end of the field began to rise. It rose slowly, ominously, with a deep rumbling sound.

"Uh-oh," Gizamon muttered.

"Look out, Gizamon, it could be anything!" Blake called, feeling helpless.

The figure remained standing still inside the massive dark opening once the door had fully risen. It seemed like a real monster from a Japanese monster movie; it took up almost all of the space it had and still seemed to be crouching, pressing against all sides of the hallway.

"It's big," Becca whispered in quiet horror.

The monster began to move, sliding awkwardly out of the cramped space, coming forward into the sunlight slowly.

The head came first. It was a dinosaur, or maybe a dragon, or at least a monster with a wide mouth full of long, sharp teeth.

At first glance, the monster seemed to have a brown head, but upon further inspection it was more obviously an armored helmet of some kind, with two horns sticking out about where the ears would be and one big horn on the snout.

The rest of the body was orange with blue stripes, and muscular, with two strong legs, a swishing, powerful tail, and two powerful arms ending in two-clawed hands.

The dinosaur lifted his head - he had to be two stories tall standing slightly hunched over - and let out a loud battle roar. His green eyes glared hungrily at little Gizamon; drool ran down the side of his great maw.

"Say hello to Greymon!" Etemon roared triumphantly.

"Greymon," Blake repeated to himself in an awed and terrified whisper, staring disbelievingly at the monster. For a split second, Blake had the feeling that he'd seen Greymon before, but then it passed, and he shrugged it away.

"Is that an Ultimate-level?" Adam asked Kunemon.

"No, but he's a strong enough Champion that he could be mistaken for a weaker Ultimate," Kunemon replied ominously.

Blake breathed heavily before pulling himself together. "Gizamon!" he replied. "This guy's a pushover for you! You can take him, no prob!" As he said this, his Digivice glowed brilliantly.

"Gizamon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Monochromon!"

Monochromon's four-leggedness made him shorter, but in reality he wasn't much smaller than Greymon.

The two massive dinosaurs faced off, roaring at each other in challenge.

"Boy, Monochromon's put on some weight," Adam muttered, noticing Monochromon's stomach protruding much farther than it was supposed to.

"Hey! Look at this!" Casey exclaimed. Adam turned to look, as did everyone else (except Blake), and gasped.

They had hit rock and could dig no more, but it was the rock that was so special. On the rock, engraved and colored bluish-white, there was a symbol.

"It's a wierd symbol, like Blake's Crest but a little different," Meggy observed.

It was a cross, wide and large. There were four right triangles, one on either side of the top and bottom of the cross. One point on each triangle pointed inwards, the right angles of triangle and cross met, and the third point pointed away from the cross.

"This might be your Crest!" Kunemon said excitedly.

"Let's see," Adam muttered. He climbed down into the hole and held out his Tag.

The slab of rock with the cross design on it glowed, shrank, and floated into its place in Adam's Tag.

"The Crest of Reliability," Adam read.

"Cool," Kunemon exclaimed.

"And look," Casey said. Where the Crest had been rock blocking their path before, there was now a hole leading into what seemed to be the basement of the inner colisseum.

"Let's go," Meggy said.

"Blake, come on!" Cameron called as the others dropped down below.

But Blake was transfixed on the battle now taking place.

Greymon had used an attack called "Nova Blast", firing a massive, super-hot fireball from his mouth. The attack had collided with Monochromon and engulfed him in flames. Monochromon had stood firm, and now he was again facing the tyrannosaurus Digimon, though the armor protecting his body was scorched.

Snapping out of his stupor, Blake cheered, "Monochromon, show him some real firepower!"

Monochromon nodded. "Volcanic Strike!" But when he opened his mouth, the only thing that came out was a loud, long belch.

"Eww, gross!" Becca squealed before dropping out of sight through the hole.

"What's wrong with Monochromon?" Blake whispered weakly.

"You fed him too much!" Cameron replied angrily.

"No," Blake muttered. "It can't be that. That's what'll get him to Ultimate."

"Ha! Looks like your Digimon needs to learn some manners!" Etemon laughed. "Show him, Greymon!"

Greymon roared and charged forward, barreling towards Monochromon.

"Dodge it, Monochromon!" Blake directed worriedly.

Monochromon sidestepped sluggishly to the left. "Too slow!" DemiDevimon observed anxiously.

Greymon slammed into Monochromon like a train hitting a bus. The collision rocked the stadium, sending dirt and loose rocks falling to the ground.

"Blake, we have to go!" Cameron urged.

"Come on, Monochromon!" Blake cried, a hint of desperation in his voice. The two dinosaurs were grappling now, and Monochromon was clearly losing.

"Blake!" Cameron snapped.

"He can Digivolve!" Blake said excitedly, whipping around to stare at Cameron. "He'll Digivolve and win!"

"No," Cameron disagreed quietly. "I think if he was going to Digivolve he would've done it by now."

"No way! You're wrong!"

Blake's tone destroyed the last of Cameron's patience. "Would you quit it? You're acting like an idiot! We're trying to get out and help Monochromon but you won't budge! And it's so obvious to everyone but you that the reason Monochromon's too slow is because you went on a psychotic rampage and forced him to eat too much!"

Cameron's words were like a slap in the face, his anger like a plunge into an icy lake. Blake stared weakly back at Cameron, hearing the words, "it's your fault" play over and over in his head; he didn't believe them. Or, maybe, he didn't _want _to believe them.

"Come on!" Cameron reiterated forcefully, grabbing Blake's arm and pulling him along. Blake didn't resist, but his eyes were blank as he followed Cameron.

When they dropped down, Casey demanded, "What took so long?"

"We had a little discussion," Cameron said. They understood.

They began walking down the hall, but realized Blake wasn't following them.

"Blake?" Meggy asked. "Aren't you coming?"

"It's my fault," Blake whispered to himself. "It's my fault."

"Blake," Meggy whispered, placing her hand on his shoulder. "It's okay. We have to help. We have to make this right."

Blake shrugged Meggy's hand away, staring with watery eyes into hers. "It's my fault."

"Blake, come on," Casey said forcefully, walking to face him. "Stop this."

Blake stared at Casey weakly, looking like he was about to cry. Casey stared back into his eyes sympathetically. "It's okay, Blake. I'm here for you."

And he drew back his fist, punching Blake with all his strength in the stomach.

Blake clutched his stomach, his eyes bugging out a bit. He gasped for air, feeling a cramping, airless feeling in his lungs.

"What are you doing, Casey?" Meggy cried, alarmed.

Blake put his arm on her shoulder. "It's okay," he gasped. He took a few more deep breaths, recovered his posture, and looked at Casey. "Thanks, man. I needed that. Now let's go save Monochromon!"

"Right!" Casey agreed. The two of them began to run down the hallway with Prairiemon while everyone else gaped in their direction.

"What?" Becca said. "He punches Blake in the stomach and suddenly Blake's okay?"

"I don't guess we have time to sit around and talk about it," Meggy said. "We have to follow them!" With that, they sprinted off down the hall after the boys.

After a few minutes of running, the children burst, panting, into the sunlight.

"Monochromon!" Blake cried desperately to his Digimon. The Digimon had apparently been battling with increasing ferocity, and now Greymon was attacking with relentless power. He grabbed Monochromon by the sides with his powerful arms, lifted him off the ground, and threw him forcefully across the arena. Monochromon's bulk smashed through the soccer goals, utterly destroying them, and flew straight into the wall seperating the arena from the stands, blanketing the area in smoke.

"Monochromon!" Blake cried out again. His brain kicked into overdrive. _How can I help him? I have the Crest, but Monochromon's not Digivolving! He's losing!_

There had to be a way. There had to be some kind of secret to Digivolution; something Blake was missing.

_Wait,_ Blake thought. _How did Gizamon Digivolve the very first time he became Monochromon? I was attacked! Flybeemon shot at me! So . . . maybe if I'm in danger, Gizamon will Digivolve!_

Blake beamed at himself for his brilliant idea, then began sprinting towards Greymon.

"Blake!" Adam called after him. "Where are you going?"

"Going to help Monochromon!" Blake answered without stopping. He leapt to the arena and began to race towards Greymon. "Come on, Monochromon! Digivolve already!" He began to address Greymon. "Hey, big ugly! Look at me! Why don't you attack me!"

Greymon's head slowly turned, his eyes observing Blake with cold indifference. Then he opened his mouth and began building up a fireball. Blake's eyes grew wide as he suddenly realized how incredibly stupid he had been to do this.

"Monochromon!" Blake yelled in angry terror. "Why don't you Digivolve already? You're not this weak, so stop acting like it! Digivolve!"

Suddenly his Crest erupted in dark purple energy that flowed fluidly. His Digivice also emitted the same kind of dark energy.

"Wha-what's happening?" Blake cried in alarm. The DigiDestined in the stands gasped, and even Greymon stopped his attack.

Monochromon was engulfed in the same kind of dark light that was emitting from Blake's Crest and Digivice. He disappeared, leaving behind a silhouette of dark-energy Monochromon.

"Monochromon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . SkullGreymon!"

The form changed, growing to three times the height. The energy faded, leaving a new Digimon standing where Monochromon had been seconds before.

"He Digivolved," Blake whispered.

He was nothing but a massive skeleton. He seemed kind of like a skeletal merger of Greymon and Monochromon. He had long legs bent underneath him with three talons, long arms with five large claws, and a huge, square head with a massive gaping mouth full of serrated teeth. He had eye holes that were nothing but darkness, and a long bone horn sticking up from her nose. There were three long bone spikes sticking out from the left and from the right of his back. There was some kind of orange tissue in his ribcage, and a large, orange missle sat on his back.

SkullGreymon turned to stare through dark eyes at Greymon. Greymon took an involuntary step backwards, staring into SkullGreymon's face. Suddenly he wasn't the biggest dinosaur on the field . . .

SkullGreymon opened his skeletal maw and unleashed a shaking, horrid roar that echoed around the stadium. Blake's bones seemed to rattle within him.

Greymon let out a feeble growl, now shamelessly backing away from the slowly advancing skeleton Digimon.

"_That's _Monochromon's Ultimate-level?" Casey asked incredulously.

With another roar, the missle on SkullGreymon launched from his back, arching through the air and slamming into Greymon. Greymon was consumed in fire and smoke, an explosion that shook the earth. After a few moments the smoke cleared, and Greymon was no more.

"SkullGreymon," Blake muttered, "be careful."

"_What!_" Etemon roared in outrage. "What did you _do! _What kind of monster is that?"

SkullGreymon growled as sinewy orange fibers rose from his back, forming a new missle. With a roar, SkullGreymon launched the missle at the jumbotron, unleashing a burst of dark energy from his mouth in the direction of the other. The two attacks collided, and the large screens were destroyed in bursts of smoke and flame.

"This isn't right," Blake whispered to himself. "He's not supposed to Digivolve like this. This isn't his real Ultimate form. This is wrong."

As SkullGreymon formed a new missle on his back, he began to turn towards Blake. Blake took a step backwards, staring warily at the great skeleton Digimon.

"Prairiemon!" Casey said, holding up his Digivice. "I don't know if this is right. Get ready to help Blake."

"SkullGreymon!" Blake called as the massive Digimon's head came around to stare down at him. "SkullGreymon, it's me! Your partner! Do you recognize me?"

SkullGreymon stared for a moment. His breaths made a hollow panting noise as they went in and out of him, the orange tissue pulsing slightly. Then, without warning, the missle left SkullGreymon's back, streaking towards Blake.

"No," Blake whispered. "It can't be."

"Prairiemon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Leomon!"

Suddenly, Blake felt Leomon's arms wrap around him and he left his feet. The ground raced away from him as his stomach flipped, and the missle collided, sending smoke and debris flying everywhere. Leomon landed far up in the stands and began carrying Blake at lightning speed away from SkullGreymon. Blake was able to see that his friends were nowhere in sight and hoped that they'd escaped to the outside.

Leomon climbed to the top of the stands and leaped over the railing, falling to the ground and landing lightly.

"Thanks, Leomon," Blake said. "I thought I was a gonner."

"We may all be gonners before we get out of this," Casey panted as he ran past, followed by everyone else. Leomon put Blake down on his feet.

"I can't believe it," Blake whispered. "I can't believe what I've done."

"Come on!" Casey cried urgently. He and Adam got on either side of Blake and helped carry him away from the stadium.

A blast of dark energy erupted through the walls of the colisseum, tearing down the walls in a wave of dust and smoke. SkullGreymon burst through after his attack, a new missle almost completely formed on his back, roaring and charging after the DigiDestined.

"Leomon!" Casey cried desperately. "Help us!"

"You're not alone!" Cameron said, running up beside them.

"DemiDevimon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Vilemon!"

"Kunemon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Kuwagamon!"

The two newly Digivolved Champion Digimon joined Leomon and launched their attacks.

"Fist of the Beast King!"

"Scissor Claw!"

"Nightmare Shocker!"

The attacks shot forward and exploded against SkullGreymon's skeletal form; the monstrosity continued moving forward.

"Help out!" Meggy cried.

"Right!" Becca agreed.

"Otamamon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Tortomon!"

"Rabbitmon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Lynxmon!"

"Strong Carapace!"

"Thermal Mane!"

Two more attacks lanced forward, and again SkullGreymon appeared to be unaffected. He released an outraged roar, taking another step forward.

"Nothing!" Cameron muttered. "No effect! What's going on here?"

"We can't stop!" Casey called. "Everyone! Attack together!"

"Let's do it!" Leomon agreed, rallying the Digimon around him. He drew his flaming fist back. "Fist of the Beast King!"

"Strong Carapace!"

"Nightmare Shocker!"

"Scissor Claw!"

"Thermal Mane!"

Five attacks joined together in a combined assault against the massive Ultimate monster. They all collided against SkullGreymon at once, engulfing his upper body in smoke.

And, when the smoke cleared, SkullGreymon stood, unphased. He shook his head slightly to clear away the rest of the smoke. He opened his maw and fired both a blast of dark energy and the giant missle at the congregation of the five Champion Digimon. In a tremendous burst of fire, smoke, and black-purple energy, the Champion Digimon disappeared from sight. Five weakened-looking Rookie-levels flew from the explosion, skidding across the ground.

"Otamamon!" Becca wailed, running to her Digimon and holding her gently. "Are you okay? Speak to me!"

SkullGreymon lifted his head into the air and roared. The roar lasted until the children were sure that he was out of breath and, with a final glare, shone with a golden energy. His massive form began to shrink rapidly until he was only about a foot tall and a round little ball with a long tail and three horns.

"Conomon!" Blake cried, running towards the weak, nearly unconcious form of his In-Training-level partner.

"He DeDigivolved all the way to the In-Training-level?" Cameron muttered. "He must have used so much energy that he couldn't even keep his Rookie shape."

"Conomon?" Blake asked tentatively, walking up to the little Digital Monster. Conomon's face was turned away from Blake; Blake picked him up and turned him around. "Conomon! No!"

For Conomon's eyes were filled with tears.

"Oh, Blake," Conomon wept. "I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to! I didn't mean to attack you! I didn't mean to do any of it!"

"It's okay," Blake said soothingly, hugging his Digimon close to him. "It's alright, Conomon, it's not your fault. It's mine. It's all my fault!"

"No," Conomon objected weakly.

"No, Conomon, it is!" Blake urged. "I'm so sorry! It's all my fault! I made you eat, I treated you badly, and I ran blindly at that Greymon. It's _all my fault!_"

"Blake . . ."

"No! Conomon, this can never happen again!" Blake wept, falling to his knees. "I will _never _allow this to happen again! Never!"

He stayed there, sobbing, for a very long time.

-

Blake's misguided beliefs about Crest Digivolution led his partner to Digivolve into the incorrect form, becoming a skeletal monstrosity. Will Conomon recover? Will Blake? Can they mend their relationship now that it's been so quickly and inadvertantly torn apart? Find out in the next Digimon: Digital Monsters!

-

A/N: I _REALLY _hate describing these Crests. At least most of you know what they look like already.


	18. Piximon's School of Hard Knocks

A/N: Hey, I got my RPG site back up and running. Since I'm not allowed to post direct links in my stories, just go to ezboard dot com and search for Digimon. The site is called Digimon Destinies. I'd really appreciate it if you'd sign up.

A/N: Sorry I haven't posted in a while. I've been very preoccupied with the RPG. I'd really love it if some of you'd sign up; it's going great!

A/N: On September 11, 2005, this story was officially one year old! Hooray! It's almost one-third complete (sixty chapters total) and, although I should have more posted after a year, I have a good excuse (four months without access to a computer is a good excuse, right?). My RPG is going strong and taking up some of my time, but as I go deeper into the story things are getting better and better and I'll probably begin to chuck out more chapters in a shorter amount of time.

A/N: Again, I apologize for the long wait. To be fair, I've been _extremely _busy lately _and _this is, by far, the longest chapter. So, I hope I've made it worth the wait. Enjoy, and HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

-

Reviews:

Gundamknight: Thanks for the enthusiastic review! Happy you enjoyed it!

UK: Way to pick up on the reference to the past.

elementBLUE: It's all right. The fact that you reviewed at all is great. Yeah, I agree the Crest description needs work. I spent a lot of time trying to figure out the best way to describe it without making it too simple or too complicated. The end result wasn't nearly as good as I would have hoped. I have many more descriptions coming up, so I hope I'll get better at it, but who knows. At least most of my readers know what they look like (you can Google them if you don't). And by Conner, I think you meant Cameron. It's good that you pick up on things like that. That's really what this story's about.

Broken Starlight: Welcome to Digimon: Digital Monsters! Glad you're enjoying the story! I wrestled for a while about whether or not to use SkullGreymon for Monochromon's Dark Digivolution, going through all my options, and, when it all came down to it, I decided SkullGreymon resembles Monochromon's true Ultimate form enough to work better than any of the others I looked at. So there's the story. And, again, I must apologize to everyone that this does resemble Adventure so much. I'm trying to make the characters and drama deeper as well as make things a bit better than they were in the show so that I can keep your attention. At least you can feel nostalgic about Adventure. I'm trying to make it as good as possible in order to make up for the repetitiveness. There's something interesting coming in the next season, but I will be adhering closely to Adventure's basic outline throughout this story. If that's not good enough for you, just push through for the sake of Digimon II. Also, don't worry about me taking this as though it's a flame. You didn't for one minute come off as though you were trying to flame me; thanks for the consideration none the less. Hope you keep reading.

-

**The Creative Process - The Storyline**

Not really much to say here . . . I feel bad about it but I will admit I kinda ripped off Adventure with this. I did add in a few things and take out a few things that will be noticeable later, but basically this is Adventure redone. The basic reason this story exists is to set things up for Digimon II . . . too bad that seems to be a little ways away. Anyhoo, this story's really fun to write and, with the help of your reviews, my skill in writing will have vastly improved by the time I take this story to a more original playing field. For now, bear with me.

-

**Previously on Digimon: Digital Monsters**

This is Casey. We finally made it to Server, but things didn't go as planned. After meeting an evil Digimon called Etemon, Blake was able to save us from being trapped in a cave forever by finding his Crest of Courage. Unfortunately, Blake became obsessed with finding the other Crests and Digivolving Gizamon to the Ultimate Level. Adam's Tag activated, and we followed it to a colisseum in the middle of the desert. While Blake and Adam searched for the Crest, the rest of us enjoyed a friendly little game of soccer. Blake found out we'd been playing and chastized us for it, but before he could be too harsh, Etemon trapped all of us except Gizamon. While Monochromon began fighting against a monstrous Greymon, we began to dig ourselves out of the trap Etemon had put us in. We found Adam's Crest of Reliability and escaped, but Monochromon wasn't doing too hot. Blake provoked the Greymon and yelled at Monochromon to Digivolve. Monochromon did Digivolve, but he did it the wrong way, becoming SkullGreymon. SkullGreymon destroyed Greymon and then turned on us! All but Kokomon Digivolved to the Champion Level, but even combined, they couldn't defeat SkullGreymon. Luckily, SkullGreymon ran out of energy and DeDigivolved all the way back to Conomon. Blake apologized, but I'm not sure he's going to get over this too fast.

-

**CHAPTER EIGHTEEN**

**Piximon's School of Hard Knocks**

They walked through the humid desert, which seemed to be wavering and shimmering around them from the heat waves rising from the hard, rocky ground.

"It really does go on forever," Becca complained, licking her parched lips with a dry tongue.

"If we don't get water soon, I don't know if we can make it," Rainey muttered, holding Kokomon limply in his arms.

They pressed onward, hoping that a Tag would activate and they could find the third Crest. They'd already found Blake's Crest of Courage, which consequently caused a nearly disastrous change in Gizamon, and had found Adam's Crest of Reliability.

"I just want a Crest of Air-Conditioning," Becca muttered glumly.

"Stop complaining," Casey said to the group. "It only makes it worse."

"So says you," Becca pouted.

The only ones who weren't complaining were Blake and Conomon, who were walking behind and seperate from the others. Blake was carrying Conomon, lost in thought, going over what had happened again and again in his mind.

_I don't know what to do about this. If I'm really capable of making Conomon Digivolve into such a monster, I don't think I can ever let him Digivolve again._

"It's a good thing we're not being attacked," Adam muttered. "We're so dehydrated that Etemon could beat us without even thinking about trying."

As if on cue, the sand around them exploded.

"Way to go, Adam!" Becca screamed as sand stung the children's eyes.

"What's going on?" Otamamon cried worriedly.

The sand settled back to the ground, revealing the two Digimon who'd attacked.

"I've seen them before," Blake said ominously, now standing alongside Casey.

"I thought we beat them!" Casey agreed.

"Flybeemon," Meggy breathed.

"They're back!" Rabbitmon growled.

"They must have followed us all the way to Server!" Cameron moaned. "They've probably been waiting for the perfect moment to kill us!"

"I don't want to die!" Becca wailed.

"We're not going to die!" Blake snapped. "We weren't beaten by these guys when they attacked us on our first day in the Digital World and we're not going to be beaten now!"

"But we won last time we faced the Flybeemon because Gizamon Digivolved," Casey whispered. "None of our Digimon can Digivolve now. What does that mean?"

"Blake, Conomon has to Digivolve!" Meggy cried. "Our only chance is to work together to beat these two, and that means we'll need Gizamon's help!"

"Conomon . . . Digivolve?" Blake whispered. _I can't let him Digivolve! He might turn out all wrong again!_

"Blake?" Rabbitmon asked. "She's right! We need your help!"

"Blake?" Conomon asked, looking questioningly at his partner. "What should I do?"

"I . . . I don't," Blake stammered. He was paralyzed by fear. He knew they needed him to fight, but he just couldn't bring himself to let Conomon out of the safety in his arms.

"Blake!" Meggy screamed as the Flybeemon lifted their cannons to finish the DigiDestined.

"Pixi Bomb!" a strange little voice cried triumphantly.

Two black bombs soared through the air, with sharp teeth and red eyes painted on them, and little bat wing-ears fluttering in the breeze. Before the DigiDestined or the Flybeemon could react, the Flybeemon were hit by the bombs. There was a small explosion and the Flybeemon disappeared in a cloud of pink smoke. When the smoke cleared, the evil Insectoid-Type Digimon were no more.

"Who - who did that?" Cameron asked.

"It can't be the Legendary Trainer!" DemiDevimon exclaimed.

"Who?" Cameron asked, but his question was answered as the owner of the strange little voice appeared, hovering at the DigiDestined's eye level, flapping his little wings.

He was round, a little bigger than Conomon, and covered with pink fur. He had little feet and arms and held a long black spear in his hand with a red ribbon tied round it near the blade. He had three pink claws on each little foot. His feet, hands and face weren't covered by fur, but had skin the same color as the childrens'. He had two wings made of large white feathers sticking out from his upper back. To top it all off, he had a cute little mouth and big, beady black eyes.

"How _cute!_" Becca exclaimed.

"Are you the one who saved us?" Casey asked.

"If you are, we're really grateful!" Adam added.

"It is!" DemiDevimon exclaimed, flapping about excitedly. "It's the Legendary Trainer!"

"_This _is the 'Legendary Trainer'?" Cameron muttered, looking skeptically at Piximon's small stature and blatent cuteness. _I would have expected a guy with the title "Legendary Trainer" to be more intimidating._

"I am indeed known as the Legendary Tamer, yes yes," he replied. "My name is Piximon, and I am well known for my impressive skills and superb training techniques!"

Rainey stifled a giggle. "_He's _got impressive skills?"

"That's right, you rude young boy!" Piximon replied, silencing Rainey at once. "I am indeed the Legendary Trainer, but you don't have to call me that! You can call me Piximon, Master, or Sensei!"

"I don't mind calling you Piximon," Meggy stated. "But why would we call you Master or Sensei?"

"Because," Piximon smiled broadly, spinning his spear, "I, as the Legendary Trainer that I am, will train all of you!"

The children and Digimon simply stared, gaping. Then, Casey said, "What?"

Piximon sighed exhasperatedly, immediately done spinning his spear. "I am the Master Trainer! Anyone can benefit from my training, and since you're the DigiDestined I'd say you benefiting is top priority!"

"So you know about us being the DigiDestined?" Adam asked.

"Of course, I'm not an idiot!" Piximon laughed. "And, since I am very much not an idiot, I know exactly who you're fighting!"

Cameron blinked, wondering if Piximon really knew. "You mean -?"

"That's right!" Piximon interrupted. "And if you don't get my training, Etemon will walk all over you!"

"Well, at least he's plugged into the current events on Server," Prairiemon whispered to Casey.

"Yeah, sure, but who knows," Casey muttered. "He might be one of Etemon's lackeys."

"No way!" Rabbitmon said.

"Last time I checked, you shouldn't have been listening to our conversation," Casey retorted a bit shortly.

"I have very sensitive hearing," Rabbitmon replied apologetically. "Anyways, it's not possible. Piximon's known for being genial, kind, helpful! He's one of the best, most well-known Digimon on Server."

"Like Leomon?" Casey shot back. "He was one of the best, most well-known Digimon on File Island, wasn't he?"

"That's different," Meggy snarled, picking Rabbitmon up and cuddling her. "Leomon was under the control of Devimon. Piximon's Gear-free."

"That's right!" Piximon said. "And for future reference, you should probably discuss whether to trust someone or not when they're not in earshot."

Casey blushed.

"So, if you're all done debating my trustworthiness, I'd like you to follow me." With that, Piximon began to float away.

"Should we follow him?" Otamamon asked.

"I guess if he really is a great trainer it'd be a shame to miss out," Meggy replied. She and Rabbitmon began to follow after Piximon. The others also began to march after him.

-

It wasn't long before Piximon stopped. They were still in the desert, with the only other thing being a dried-up well sitting nearby, made of tanned stones. The children had pulled the bucket up from the bottom, but all it held was dust and sand.

"It feels like it's going to rain," Prairiemon muttered.

"Really?" Casey asked. "How can you tell?"

"The pressure's dropping."

"Indeed it is, and a very astute observation," Piximon interjected. "Very good, Prairiemon!"

"I don't want to sleep in the rain!" Becca wailed.

"It'll be okay," Otamamon comforted her. "There are worse things."

"Not really," Becca replied, thinking hard.

"It will indeed be more than fine!" Piximon piped up again. "For you won't be sleeping here in the desert!"

"What do you mean?" Cameron asked. "Where else will we sleep?"

Piximon smiled grandly. "Why, in my domain, of course!"

"Your domain?" Conomon wondered.

"That's correct. I live in a special domain that's seperate from the desert of Server!" Piximon motioned to the air behind him. "This is where the portal to my domain can be found!"

"You mean you live in an alternate dimension?" Adam asked.

"No, it's simply set apart from the rest of the world," Piximon replied. "For protection."

"Oh," Kunemon said. "That's nice, that you have your own protected land."

"Especially when Etemon's running around acting stupid," Casey added.

"Indeed," Piximon agreed. He waved his staff in the air.

The emptiness behind Piximon shimmered in a golden light. Slowly, the circle of light stopped shimmering. The light died down to reveal a hole looking into a lush forest.

"No way!" Rainey cried happily. "A forest!"

"You're hiding a whole forest?" Casey observed, astonished. "I thought you might just have a little hill or something."

"You're not the first to be surprised," Piximon said nonchalantly. He flew through the hole and continued on through the forest.

The children all stared disbelievingly after him, not sure what to do. Finally, Piximon turned and shouted at them to hurry up.

"Let's go," Casey sighed, and they all climbed in through the portal, which closed itself behind them.

-

Etemon growled angrily as he stared at the many monitors in front of him. Thwarted twice by those bratty kids and not anything to show for it but some bruised pride and one less Greymon servant.

"What can I do to find those kids and finish them off?" Etemon wondered aloud.

"What?" Gazimon said, looking up at his master. He'd been scrubbing the floor clean; when SkullGreymon had destroyed Greymon and a large portion of the stadium, Etemon hadn't taken it well and had taken his anger out on his many Gazimon servants by assigning them remedial tasks. "What did you say?"

"What did I say about talking!" Etemon roared. "I said focus on your work! No talking!"

"I just thought -"

"You're not paid to think!"

"I'm not paid at all!"

"Well, that's not my fault, is it?"

"Actually . . ."

Gazimon stopped when he saw Etemon's glare, fervently scrubbing the floor again and hoping Etemon would cool down. _Man, those kids are really giving him a problem._

Etemon was having similar thoughts. _How can they continue to defeat me? They escaped the cave by pure luck, and then that little Digimon Digivolved to SkullGreymon just before Greymon could win. What do they do to pull off all these victories?_

Etemon stood. He walked past Gazimon, taking extra care to tread carelessly on his tail, and went over to his guitar. "This always cheers me up."  
He strummed absentmindedly, deep in thought. _They can't beat me personally, but they are strong enough to beat Greymon. I'll just have to get somebody stronger than Greymon next time I find them._

"I was just thinking - " Gazimon began.

"Shush!" Etemon snapped. "Can't you see I'm _musing_!"

"Well, sorry, master, sir, but - I - you see - " Gazimon blushed.

"What?" Etemon roared as one of the guitar's strings broke. "Spit it out, you worthless Digimon!"

"I was just - just thinking: Maybe it would be easier to destroy them if you focus on one at a time."

Etemon stared at his subordinate.

"What?"

"If you split them up and then attack them one at a time, they won't be able to back each other up."

"Of course," Etemon murmured ghoulishly, placing his guitar down gently and rising to his feet. "Divide and conquer! It's a brilliant idea!" He struck a victorious pose. "I'm glad I thought of it!"

"Actually, sir, I tho -"

"What did I say about talking!"

-

"Ugh," Becca groaned. "What a long walk!"

"Don't worry," Piximon said. "We're here!"

Becca wasn't the only one who was relieved - all the children and Digimon looked up happily. They'd been walking for quite a ways through Piximon's forest, which was, admittedly, much better than walking through the desert, but they were now more than their fair share of tired.

"This is it?" Prairiemon asked. He was looking disapprovingly at the mountain they now stood in front of.

"Yes indeed!" Piximon replied. "This is my home - or, at least, the temple on the summit is!"

"On the summit?" Rainey cried in dismay.

"Yep!" Piximon responded enthusiastically. "You'd better get walking if you want to get there for lunch!"

"What?" Cameron cried. "More walking?"

"Hey!" DemiDevimon laughed, fluttering into the air. "It's not so bad!" He continued to laugh as he soared into the air.

"No!" Piximon yelled. He swooped to join DemiDevimon in the air, smacking him reproachfully on the forehead with the blunt end of his spear. "Flying is not allowed!"

"Aww, come on!" Lopmon moaned. "Just this once?"

"No!" Piximon refused. "There will be no flying to the summit! All of you will walk!"

The children all groaned, muttering their disapproval of this instruction.

"Well, we'd better get going," Blake muttered wearily.

"Nope!" Piximon contradicted.

"Huh?"

"Everyone else can get moving," Piximon said. "You, on the other hand, will bring Conomon and follow me!"

"Why?"

"Yeah, I thought we were going to train as a team!" Casey said, immediately on guard for any of Etemon's tricks.

"Because, you have special training," Piximon explained patiently.

"O - okay?" Blake said unsurely.

"Are you sure he can't just work with us?" Casey asked.

Piximon shook his head. "Nope. It's very important that he do this."

"Come on, Blake!" Conomon piped up from his partner's arms. "Don't worry. Piximon's a good guy!"

Blake looked at his partner in concern. "I know, I just - I - I'm not sure we're strong enough."

"You're not going to be fighting a mob of angry Digimon," Piximon muttered. "You'll be fine. This is a special type of training."

Blake looked to Conomon. They nodded to each other. "Let's go," Blake said.

Piximon began to fly away from the other DigiDestined. Blake gave them a little wave, a thumbs up, and a half-hearted smile before following after Piximon.

"And, while I'm away, you kids had better get moving! Chop-chop!"

The children groaned at Piximon's directions and began walking dejectedly up the uneven and treacherous path towards Piximon's temple.

-

Etemon stared at the television screens in front of him, scratching his chin in deep thought.

"He's good . . . that one's a powerful fighter . . . oh! He's good too!"

Etemon shook his head. "I just can't figure out which way I want to destroy them!"

A Gazimon approached nervously from behind. He'd heard the stories of Etemon's illogical rage and undying narcissism and wasn't too pleased to be the one to bring dissappointing news to his master.

"Uh - erm - master?"

Etemon didn't respond.

"Master?" Gazimon tried, a bit louder this time.

Etemon grunted. "What?"

"I've brought news."

"That's good. Put it beside the guitar." Etemon waved his hand in the air dismissively, still staring intently at the bank of monitors.

Gazimon sighed. Etemon never listened.

Turning to leave, Gazimon looked around the cool, dimly lit trailer at all of Etemon's unnecessary possessions. He began to move slowly towards the door, but stopped. Etemon might not want to be disturbed right now, but if he found out that Gazimon had had information about the DigiDestined and hadn't shared, he'd be in even more trouble. Time to choose the lesser of two evils.

"Master," Gizamon said confidently. "I have news."

Etemon sighed, resting his face in his hands for a moment before turning lazily. "Why do you useless Gazimon insist on disturbing me during my me-time?"

"Sorry, sir," Gazimon apologized, bowing low. "We don't mean to, but we just wanted to give you an update on the DigiDestined."

Etemon's eyebrows raised with slight interest.

"You - you told us to keep an eye out for them?" Gazimon said, trying to jog Etemon's memory.

Etemon nodded, silent.

"Well," Gazimon continued, flustered by his Master's lack of acknowledgement, "they - they've disappeared."

"What!" Etemon roared, immediately on his feet.

Gazimon backed up instinctively. "I - It's not my fault!"

"Well, I can blame you!" Etemon growled, raising his hand to strike.

"Wait!" Gazimon pleaded, his hands up in front of his face defensively. "Don't! There wasn't anything we could do! We were watching them, tracking them one second; next second, they're gone."

Etemon still felt like giving Gazimon a good backhand, but held back. Through gritted teeth, he growled, "Show . . . me . . . where . . . they . . . disappeared!"

Gazimon breathed a sigh of relief. He ran over to the bank of monitors, followed by Etemon. Etemon pressed a button and the images of Etemon's subjects disappeared, replaced by a grid-map of the desert of Server.

"There!" Gazimon pointed a claw at one of the monitors and a red dot appeared.

"There?" Etemon asked for confirmation.

"Yes, there!" Gazimon confirmed.

"Hmm," Etemon muttered, his hand back to his chin. "I know that area. And I know just who to send to fight . . ."

-

"What do you think is so important that Blake has to have special training?" Cameron wondered.

"I don't know," DemiDevimon muttered. "Aren't you more interested in what _we're _gonna be doing?"

"A little," Cameron admitted.

"I'd bet he puts us in sparring matches," Meggy said. "Pit our Digimon against each other to practice beating enemies that know our tactics. Makes us think on our feet, come up with new stuff."

"That's a pretty good idea," Casey said.

"Yeah, but what about Kokomon and I?" Rainey asked. "We wouldn't be very good in a sparring match, Kokomon's only an In-Training Level Digimon."

"Good point," Cameron noted. "It'll have to be something other than that."

"But what?" DemiDevimon wondered.

No one had an answer.

-

"Here we are."

Piximon was very solemn, something that made Blake and Conomon remain reverently silent. They'd continued through the forest for a while with a growing amount of fog until they'd finally arrived at the mouth of a cave.

"In here?" Blake asked quietly, eyeing the darkness.

"Yes," Piximon said. "Your friends have some difficult training ahead of them, but yours may be the most difficult of all."

Blake stared at Piximon, soaking in these ominous words. "What do you mean? How will it be so difficult?"

Piximon stared through the fog at a distant nothing. "You've lost something you need. Within is the answer you seek. Monsters have attacked you in this world, many foes have come to attack you, and yet nothing you've faced is as shocking as what you are about to encounter."

Conomon looked compassionately at his partner. "Don't worry, Blake. I'm here."

Blake smiled fondly at the little ball of fur. "Thanks, buddy." He gazed determinedly at Piximon. "I'm ready."

Piximon still did not look him in the eye. "Many times in your life you'll find yourself frightened, but never will you feel fear like that which you feel when facing your own past's failures, the opportunities for failure in the future." Finally, Piximon turned to face him directly. "This is a difficult path for many, and I, unfortunately, cannot take this path with you. The two of you are on your own."

"We'll be okay," Blake assured him.

Piximon floated in the air in silence for a moment. "Yes, I think you will be." As he floated slowly away, he said, "Simply enter the cave. I sincerely hope you find the answers you need."

-

Becca screamed in relief. They'd finally made it to the summit to behold Piximon's temple, which was like a great Roman structure, with white stones, great, gleaming pillars, and plenty of space.

"It's really beautiful," Otamamon commented.

"But what's better is," Becca squealed in delight, "there are places to sit down!"

She began sprinting excitedly towards the temple, followed by the other DigiDestined children. Their feet ached, they were weary, and they were hungry. The prospect of sitting down and taking a bite of a plump, juicy fruit was almost overwhelmingly joyful.

Unfortunately, before they could reach the temple, Piximon fluttered into view. "Stop right there!"

All of them came to an abrupt halt.

"You are not to enter the temple as you are! You must clean yourselves!"

"A bath!" Becca squealed. "A shower! Do you mean it? It sounds too good to be true!"

"That's probably because it was the last time," Meggy muttered, reflecting back on the unfriendly Pagumon village.

"Yes!" Piximon cried. "You must be clean before you enter the temple! That means wash your clothes and wash yourselves!"

"I like the sound of that!" Becca exclaimed.

Otamamon nodded. "Me too!"

They were less than thrilled.

"It's so cold!" Becca shrieked.

"Well, to be fair, he never said it would be warm," Meggy reflected.

The girls and their Digimon were on one side of the temple, the boys on the other, and each of the groups were staring at one porcelain bathtub full of chilly water.

"We have to take turns in this freezing stuff," Becca complained.

"Do you want me to go first?" Meggy asked helpfully. "I think you should just get it over with but it's really up to you."

"I agree," Otamamon said. "Let's just get it over with and we can go inside."

"I'm not even sure I _want _to go inside!" Becca pouted. "We even have to use this water to wash our clothes! We can't even change the water between washings! Gross!"

"Just go first," Meggy directed calmly.

"It's not so bad," Rabbitmon agreed.

Becca tenatively stuck her fingertip in the freezing water, removing it quickly. "Oh! This stinks! I'd bet anything that Blake and Conomon are having the time of their lives while we're left out here to suffer!"

-

"Do you trust this place, Conomon?"

"Yeah, it's just part of Piximon's training, that's all."

Blake frowned. "We've been walking for a while, though, and I still can't see anything but this thick fog."

"Cheer up, Blake! Maybe there's a lesson in that."

"I don't think so," Blake murmured softly. He stopped. "Did you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"Listen."

Blake stood stock-still, listening intently.

"There!"

"What?"

Blake looked at his partner in bewilderment. "I can't believe you don't hear it yet. We must not be close enough."

"My ears aren't as good as yours while I'm Conomon," the little Digimon explained. "What do you hear."

"Water," Blake said. "Little waves, lapping against a dock or a shore or something."

As they walked, the sound became clearer, more distinct. It was indeed the gentle slap of tiny waves colliding lazily with some kind of surface. They drew closer to the source of the sound and were able to make out a shape in the fog.

"A boat," Blake said.

Floating in what appeared to be a gently moving stream was a small wooden boat with an oar inside of it. There was a rope tied to the tip of the boat, the other end of which was wrapped round a thick stick stuck in the dirt by the water.

"Do you think we're supposed to get in?" Conomon asked curiously.

"I'm not sure," Blake muttered. He'd never quite felt very stable in boats before, but enjoyed being out on the water and had therefore never let it bother him before. What was different now was that he was in a place unknown to him, surrounded by nothing but thick fog, and he was alone, with only his Digimon partner who, at the moment, didn't have any arms to help in case anything went wrong. "I don't really feel comfortable just getting in some random boat."

"But what if this is Piximon's training?"

"I don't see how rowing down a river is very good for training us to be a good team in a fight against Etemon."

"I don't either but Piximon isn't exactly known for conventional training techniques."

Blake stared concernedly down at his Digimon partner. "You think it's all right?"

"Of course!" Conomon exclaimed gleefully. "Besides, if anything goes wrong I'm here to protect you! I might not be much in my In-Training form, but you're my partner and I won't ever let anything bad happen to you!"

Blake smiled and felt tears welling in his eyes. "Thanks . . . buddy."

Conomon blushed. "Anytime."

"I - I'm still afraid," Blake whispered.

"It's okay," Conomon replied. "I'm here. Nothing bad will happen."

"Yeah, but -"

"Come on, Blake," Conomon said. "Sometimes you've just got to take a chance and go for it, even if you're a little bit afraid."

Blake processed these words slowly and smiled. "Conomon, you're really smart."

"Thanks."

"Alright," Blake said, putting Conomon gently into the boat. "I guess we'll try it." He shakily got into the boat, using the stick for support, and sat down. After a moment's working with the rope, he got it loose and they were on their way.

"Here we go," Blake murmured. "Wherever this leads us, there's no going back. I just hope we made the right decision."

"Whether it's right or it's wrong," Conomon said, "we made it, and we're going to face it together!"

Blake couldn't help but smile.

-

Seeing that there were twice as many guys as there were girls, the ladies were done with their baths much faster than the guys were done with theirs.

"It's good that you're all clean," Piximon said when Casey and Prairiemon finally trotted into the great hall to join all the others. "That was a nice break I'm sure."

"Now it's time to eat!" Rainey said, laughing with excitement.

Piximon shook his head. "Sorry, lunch has been served and removed."

"What?" Rainey asked.

"You missed it," Piximon said dismissively.

There was a cry of dismay among the children.

"What about our backpack full of fruit?" Cameron asked, his stomach growling angrily.

"Oh, yeah!" Adam said, reaching to take the backpack off - and realizing it wasn't there.

"You lost our food?" Casey yelled angrily.

"No way!" Becca wailed.

"No!" Adam cried, his hands up defensively. "I - I didn't! It was right here, and now it's not!"

"It's nice to know that our inanimate object, the backpack, comes and goes as it pleases," Meggy said dryly.

"I'm serious!" Adam defended, his voice cracking.

"Now, now, children!" Piximon broke in. "Don't fight!"

"Why shouldn't we?" Meggy growled. "He lost our food! There's no way we'll survive Etemon on an empty stomach, no matter how much Piximon trains us!"

"Wait!" Piximon yelled.

Silence fell.

"_I_ took the food," Piximon explained patiently.

All children and Digimon cried in unison, "You _what_!"

"I took the food," Piximon repeated calmly. "You're training with me now, and that means I decide when you eat. I had to take it or you'd be too tempted to eat something without permission."

"Great," Prairiemon sighed. "He stole our food."

"You'll get it back after our training is over," Piximon assured them. "But, for now, it's time to jump-start you on the road to success."  
"Well, at least this'll help us keep our minds off of food," Meggy murmured grumpily.

"Of course," Piximon said in the this-is-an-important-announcement way he always talked. "Your training will be -" He paused for effect.

"Come on!" Rabbitmon urged.

"Spill it!" Otamamon agreed eagerly.

"You must scrub down every last inch of the temple!"

They simply gaped.

"You have to be kidding," Adam said hoarsely. "This place is massive! Even with all twelve of us working it'll take forever!"

"Then you'd better get started!" Piximon directed. He waved his wand in the air and twelve buckets full of soapy water and two sponges appeared.

"Extra sponges?" Becca asked wearily.

"You'll need them," Piximon replied as he fluttered away. "Trust me."

They turned to each other as Piximon disappeared. "Is it just me, or does it seem like Piximon's more interested in wearing us out than he is in making us strong?" Casey asked.

"No one said it would be easy," Meggy replied.

"But this is ridiculous," Rainey muttered darkly.

"Well, Piximon said it best," Adam cut in. "We'd better get started."

"How do you propose we do so?" Becca wondered. "This place is so huge! How can we ever finish it all?"

"One step at a time," Cameron replied. "We'll split up into six groups, one kid and their Digimon per group. Then we can take out six rooms at a time. It'll take a while, but we'll get this place sparkling!"

-

Blake peered through the fog warily. He held the oar in his hands, ready in case he needed to do some steering, but the gentle current seemed to be moving them just fine at the moment. Whether it was moving them in the right direction was another matter entirely.

"Still feeling confident?" he asked his little partner.

"Yeah," Conomon replied. "I always feel good when I'm with you!"

Blake stared at his partner. "You know, you don't have to say stuff like that to make me feel better."

Conomon stared at him in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, you don't have to put on some kind of act to get me to feel better."

Conomon was greatly distressed by these words. "I'm not putting on any kind of act! When I say things like that, it's because I mean it!"

Blake looked him in the eye. "Really?"

Conomon stared back with a smile. "Of course!"

Blake felt a tear run down his cheek. "Thanks. That means a lot."

-

"Ugh!" Meggy growled. "This is so _stupid!_ Piximon has us here to do his janitorial work, not to train for battle against evil Digimon!"

Rabbitmon shook her head worriedly. "His teaching methods are DigiWorld-renowned, and he's famous for unorthodox techniques, but this really is a bit odd."

"Really?" Piximon's voice came from above them. He floated into view. "You mean you're _not _learning from this?"

"Of course not!" Meggy shot back angrily. "All we're doing is scrubbing floors! How does that help us learn battle tactics? Or do all evil Digimon secretly fear soap-suds?"

Piximon frowned. "Sarcasm may amuse you, but it won't get you very far here. You should always show your Sensei respect."

"Sensei?"

"That's right!" Piximon said sharply. "As soon as you accepted me to train you, you agreed to allowing me to be your Sensei, your Master, your Teacher, for however long I saw fit."

"So we walked into bondage, you mean?" Meggy spat dryly.

"Why would you say something like that?" Piximon asked, knowing the answer.

"Because you're working us like slaves!" she cried, outraged.

Piximon smiled. "And again I shall ask: You mean you're not learning from this?"

Meggy stared back, thinking, the wheels in her head turning.

"I don't know what he means," Rabbitmon whispered behind her paw. Meggy shook her head in agreement: She had no idea what he wanted.

Piximon continued. "What could I possibly mean by sending you to do such a long, remedial, and apparently worthless task?"

Meggy again thought hard, but said nothing. Rabbitmon was stumbling over the questions shooting through her head, also not coming up with anything logical.

"What could I possibly hope for you to learn?"

Nothing. It's like her brain was off.

Piximon sighed, though he'd expected to explain it anyway. "First, when I gave you this task, I wanted to see your reactions. Then, I wanted to see your planning stage. Who took charge and who stayed back, who wanted to unite and who wanted to split. Then, the rest was up to you."

"So this is all for your benefit?" Meggy asked. "But why have us do all this if all you really wanted to see you've already seen?"

Piximon chuckled. "Why, indeed! Perhaps I don't think you've passed the test!"

Meggy frowned. "But - we've shown you all of that information. That should be enough."

"I've learned about your attitudes, your personalities, yes, and I can train you, but the real training _is _this!"

"This is the training?"

"This is the training! There's just something I want you to learn from this; something so simple that you've overlooked it!"

Meggy thought for a moment. "What? We talked about it, we decided, we acted."

"Yes . . ."

"And here we are. Six groups of two, working on your palace."

"And why is that?"  
"What?" Meggy asked. "Why is what?"

"Why is it that way? Six groups of two?"

Meggy thought hard. "Because that's what we decided. Six groups of two, makes the work go faster."

Piximon smiled. "Does it, now?"

Meggy frowned again. "Well, I guess not. The work would probably go about as fast like this as it would if we were all working in the same place."

"Indeed," Piximon noted.

"But . . ." Meggy began. "But why is that what you wanted us to learn? That doesn't make sense!"

"Perhaps you shouldn't be working in six groups of two," Piximon said slyly. "You have your Digimon partner there to keep you company and keep you working, but are you really having any fun?"

"Fun?" Meggy asked. "I was under the impression that fun wasn't part of the assignment."

"Well, that's the shocking part, isn't it," Piximon replied, twirling in the air. He liked explaining things to his subjects. "Fun _wasn't _part of the assignment, and yet it was a possibility; one that you apparently didn't seem to desire to take."

"But," Meggy contradicted, "if we're having a lot of fun, we might get distracted and the task won't be completed as quickly!"

"Ah, a very valid point," Piximon agreed solemnly. "And that's a big question you must ask yourself. Would you rather come away from completing a large task like this and think 'well, that was difficult, but we finished it,' or would you rather come away thinking 'that was tough, but we finished it and had a great time doing it'?"

Meggy let this sink in. "So, you're saying it's better for us to have fun and do the work slower than it is to focus on the task and get it done as soon as possible?"

Piximon smiled. "This is a difficult concept to grasp for many, because they expect something complicated. It's called teamwork. There's something about teamwork that makes everything special. If you're with your friends, your teammates, whatever task you're attempting will be just a bit easier and much more enjoyable. Therefore, you'll get more out of it and come away feeling much bettter about yourself as a whole."

Meggy shook her head confusedly. "So, the big lesson you want us to learn is that we need to have fun with our friends?"

"No!" Piximon shouted, laughing at how she missed the point so clearly. "The point is that no matter what you do, be it the remedial cleaning of my floors or the desperate battle against evil, you must always rely on your friends. Without them, the task is treacherous, but with them there is light and hope and happiness. I'm trying to bond you! I'm trying to let you enjoy the simple things, like being together and getting sidetracked by a sponge war! The simple things; those are often put by the wayside because we want immediate access and tangible productivity over the happiness of a child."

"I think I understand," Meggy said with a smile. "You want us to realize that no matter what we do, teamwork is most important?"

"Yes!" Piximon cheered. "And all that battle training and defeating evil just comes naturally to those who are willing to do the task. But those who are willing and alone may win, but there is often a hole in their lives."

Meggy smiled fondly as she thought of her friends. "I'll go get them right now!"

"Yes, yes, go!" Piximon urged, shooing the two out the door. He didn't mind them leaving their pails and sponges lying there; it's not like he kept this place clean anyway.

-

The water was still gently lapping at the boat, carrying it slowly and smoothly down the little river towards whatever destination it had in mind.

"Feels like we've been floating forever," Blake commented wearily. "I wish we'd come to a stop -"

At that precise moment, the boat had nudged gently into what seemed to be a sidewalk.

"No way," Blake muttered. "Where'd that sidewalk come from?"

"It's not like you would have seen it before," Conomon said. "The fog's still too thick."

But it seemed as though the fog was receding a little, for the dark silhouette of a bridge materialized a little ways down the sidewalk.

"You want to check it out?" Blake asked Conomon.

"Sure!" Conomon said, eager to see something other than water and fog.

"Alright, I'll just tie this," Blake murmured as he secured the boat to a piece of wood almost identical to the one they'd cast off from. He lifted himself and his Digimon out of the boat and, carrying Conomon close to him, he began walking towards the bridge.

As he stepped upon the bridge, he could hear crying.

"Where is that coming from?" Blake wondered.

"I don't know."

"Hello?" Blake called. "Is anyone there?"

As if in response, the fog pulled away to show a little boy with his head in his hands, sobbing bitterly. A bike lay on its side beside him.

"Who is that?" Conomon wondered.

Blake recongnized the boy immediately. The hair, the bridge, the bike; they were from his memory.

"It's me," he said, dazed.

The little boy looked up, his clear blue eyes watery but unmistakeably the same that Blake had now. "Wh - who are you?"

"I'm - uh - my name is -" Blake was at a loss. He didn't want to lie to himself.

"A friend," Conomon whispered.

"I'm a friend," Blake said confidently. "Why are you crying?" But even as he asked, the memory flooded him, becoming more and more vivid as the little him talked.

"I was riding my bike. I just got it for my birthday and I was really happy but I don't know how and I fell lots and skinned my knees and everything. I'll never learn to ride!"

"Don't worry," Blake said soothingly. "You'll learn. I promise."

"How do you know?" little Blake asked, wiping his nose with his sleeve.

Blake chuckled lightly. "I have a feeling."

"But what if I don't?" he asked himself. "What if I keep falling until my knees can't be skinned anymore and I never learn to ride and all the other guys laugh at me?"

Blake shook his head, smiling. "You can't think like that." He laughed encouragingly. "Lots of things _can _happen, but if you never take the chance, you'll never know what _will _happen. If you don't give yourself the chance to try something new you might miss out on something great! And what does it matter if you fall once or twice? Even though you fall, there's no harm in getting back up again. Just be confident in yourself and everything will turn out all right."

Little Blake looked at his older self and smiled. Blake extended a hand, which the younger one took. After getting him back to his feet, Blake bent down to look himself in the eye. He wiped away the tears with his thumbs and gave him the biggest, most encouraging smile he could.

"I'll keep trying," little Blake said, lifting the bike into an upright position.

"Right," Blake said, smiling. He grabbed the back of the bike. "Come on. I'll get you started."

Young Blake began pedaling faster and faster, Blake jogging behind him, keeping the bike steady.

"Alright!" Blake cried happily. "Off you go!" He released the bike and little Blake sped away, laughing joyously.

"Thanks, mister!" he called back to Blake, and then he disappeared into the fog.

"Wow," Blake muttered, picking up Conomon and staring off into the direction of his younger self. "I remember that!"

"You do?"

"Well, I never actually met myself as I am now, but I remember sitting on that bridge and thinking I would never learn to ride the bike," Blake reminisced happily. "But then I talked myself into giving it another shot. I got back on my bike and it's as if I was being held up, I never fell at all. I made it all the way home without falling once!"

"Maybe you _did _meet yourself that day," Conomon suggested.

Blake looked at him thoughtfully. "It's possible. I guess we'll never know, really."

"Maybe."

"Alright," Blake said. "Let's get back in the boat! Let's see where else this river takes us!"

-

"Well," Meggy sighed, "I don't know if Piximon really is a great teacher or whatever, but I do like his advice!"

"Yeah!" Rabbitmon agreed.

After Piximon's speech to her and Rabbitmon, Meggy had promptly gathered the other DigiDestined together in a unified assault on the grimy floors of Piximon's abode.

Kokomon laughed uproariously as he slid across the floor, riding a sponge like he was surfing.

"Hey!" Rainey laughed. "You're supposed to be working, not playing!"

"Think about it," Adam smiled, wiping a soap sud off his cheek before returning to the tile he'd been scrubbing. "They're really the same thing when you're with all of your friends, aren't they?"

The other DigiDestined had to agree. They had gotten together and now all felt much happier with their task than they had previously. In addition to this, they'd broken out into a few miniature soapy sponge wars, which hadn't necessarily been productive, but had certainly lifted their spirits and, therefore, their work-ethic.

"I guess Piximon's not as crazy as we thought," Cameron reflected. "He really had some good advice."

"I guess we'll just have to remember this as an important lesson," DemiDevimon agreed. "We need to always work together, no matter what we do!"

"Yeah," Meggy said with a smile, before chucking her sponge at Casey's head. He retaliated and in seconds the room was full of laughter and flying, soapy sponges.

-

"I see something!" Blake called excitedly. He was anxious to see what else this cave had in store for him.

"Alright!" Conomon cheered.

The boat bumped lightly onto the tile-floor-shoreline and Blake quickly tied the vessel securely around yet another wooden rod. "Tiles?" he muttered to himself.

Familiar tiles.

Conomon bounced behind Blake as he walked through the hallways of his school. Recognizing the door to his fifth grade classroom, Blake opened it and stepped inside.

Inside the classroom, three people could be seen. One of them was familiar, but the other two were, at least to Conomon, complete strangers.

"It's me again," Blake murmured, not as surprised this time as he had been on the bridge.

"But who are the other two?" Conomon asked.

Blake looked around quickly. This memory wasn't very strong, possibly not even really a memory, but he knew the people and he knew that he needed to see whether there was a teacher around or not.

"What are you looking for?" Conomon inquired.

"There isn't one," Blake muttered darkly.

"What's going on?" Conomon cried.

"Hey, punk, you think you're better than me?" one of the other two kids said. He was tall and broad-shouldered and he was glaring at the other child, a small, bespectacled boy with messy brown hair and a cowering posture that made him look weak.

"N - n - no!" the cowering one said. "I - I didn't m - mean anything b - by it! Honest!"

"Yeah, well, you have to pay!" the big kid growled, lifting his fist into the air. Then, suddenly, the two of them froze, leaving Conomon and the Blakes mobile.

_What should I do?_ the younger Blake thought, though Blake and Conomon could hear it. _I can't just let him beat this kid up . . . but what do I do if he turns against me?_

Blake watched himself in careful contemplation, but nothing seemed to be happening. "Why isn't he stopping that bully?" Blake whispered to Conomon. "Or at least deciding not to?"

"Maybe he needs some guidance?" Conomon suggested. "Like on the bridge, when you helped yourself ride the bike."

Nodding confidently, Blake strode towards his slightly younger self. "Hey!"

Young Blake jumped in fright. "Wh - who are you? Are you my conscience?"

Blake stopped for a moment, chuckling inside at the silly question from himself. Then he decided to go along with it and said, "Yeah."

"I've never . . . seen my conscience before," young Blake stuttered, unsure of himself.

"It's alright," Blake replied, smiling.

"You look a lot like me," young Blake observed.

Blake laughed to himself yet again.

"Why are you here?" young Blake asked.

"I'm here to help you out," Blake replied. "You're in kind of a tough situation, aren't you?"

"Yeah," young Blake sighed, and Blake could almost feel the weight of the world lifting off of his younger self's shoulders in that moment. "I don't know what to do. This guy's a known bully; he's really scary. If I try to stop him, he might turn against me. I can't fight him; I'm big enough, but not mean enough. But if I don't try to stop him, how can I live with myself?"

Blake wanted to get mad at the teacher, whoever it was, for leaving the room when it was so obvious that this was going to happen, but figured his younger self didn't need a rage at what wasn't. Instead, he continued on the same tangent, guiding his young self to what he figured was okay. "It's a tough situation, but you can't be scared. Sometimes the other guy's gonna be bigger and stronger and scarier than you, but you stand up to him just the same, just because it's right."

"But, what if he hits me?" young Blake asked, fear evident in his shaking and watery eyes.

Blake smiled compassionately, comfortingly. "He might, but then you've just got to get up and show him you're not scared. He's still wrong, and you still need to fight it."

"But I'm scared."

"It's okay to be scared," Blake admitted. "But you can't let fear rule you like the bullies use fear to rule others. You have to overcome it, and _that_ will put you on top."

"What if I don't stop him?" young Blake murmured quietly, fearfully.

"People will see what he did to you and that other kid and they'll realize that their friends don't deserve to be treated that way by the low-life bully," Blake said. "It's like this great quote I heard: 'The only way that evil can prevail is for good men to do nothing.' Or something like that."

Young Blake mused over that until understanding entered his eyes. "That's a cool quote." Another interesting thought popped into his younger self's mind. "Wait . . . if you're my conscience, how do you know that quote if I didn't?"

Blake was caught off guard, mentally slapping himself for missing this piece of information, but recovered quickly. "Some things just don't always make sense. Don't worry about it. All you need to think about right now is what's going on right now."

"Right," young Blake nodded, a determined and courageous look on his face. "Thank you."

Things came into motion again as young Blake turned to face the bully. "Hey! Stop right there!"

The bully's hand stopped, hovering above the other boy's glasses, threatening to smash them. "What do you want, pip-squeak?" As he said this, though, Blake noticed that he'd realized Blake's size and was sizing up these new odds in his mind.

"I want you to stop picking on him!" young Blake replied evenly. "Maybe pick on someone your own size!"

"Like you?" the bully growled menacingly.

Young Blake gulped slightly, mustered his courage, and replied, "Yeah. Like me."

The bully let go of the other boy and turned to face young Blake. They stared at each other evenly, not breaking the glare, the electricity between them clearly felt. Then the bully looked away, scoffed, and muttered, "You're not worth it. Just a little pip-squeak."

He left the room.

Young Blake went to help the other boy up. "Thank you," the boy said gratefully. "I was so scared!"

Young Blake laughed. "So was I!"

They laughed together as young Blake walked with the other boy out of the room. Before he left, he turned to peer back into the classroom. Blake flashed him the thumbs-up sign, but his younger self didn't seem to see; he turned and left.

"You know what?" Conomon said admiringly. "That was spoken like a true champion!"

Blake blushed. "Come on, Conomon. Let's get back to the boat."

-

The children lay around the large room, snoozing peacefully. They'd been exhausted by Piximon's work-out, but they'd had fun. Now they were all happily enjoying the benefits of their labor.

Well, almost all of them.

Casey was resting his head against the wall, his feet pulled up to his chest, his arms wrapped around his knees, eyes closed, but he was far from sleep.

"Why can't I get to sleep?" Casey muttered to himself. "Why do I feel like I'm supposed to be doing something important?"

"That's a good question," came the unexpected reply.

"Who - Cameron?"

Cameron sat up quietly, pushing DemiDevimon, who'd been resting against him, away very gently into a comfortable position. DemiDevimon sighed contentedly, smacking his lips in his sleep. "I can't sleep either. I feel the same way."

"That's wierd," Casey muttered. "I wonder if any of the others feel like this."

"Good question," Cameron agreed. "But, since they're all asleep, I guess we can't check."

"Yeah," Casey laughed quietly. "I'm glad that everyone can get a good night's rest here, with no worries about Etemon's cronies attacking us while we sleep."

"It is nice," Cameron sighed. He looked at Casey and, in unison with him, muttered, "Then why do I feel so strange?"

Suddenly, as if in answer, both boys' Tags began to glow.

"Looks like there was a reason," Casey muttered.

"That's strange," Cameron murmured. "Why would they just now begin to glow?"

"Maybe something changed?" Casey suggested.

"I'd bet the barrier between Piximon's world and the desert on Server gets weak around this time of night."

Casey nodded thoughtfully, closing his eyes again. "Perhaps."

"What should we do?"

Casey leaned back against the wall, breathing deeply. "I suppose we should go see if we can find our Crests. We can't just leave them there."

"Yeah," Cameron agreed. He got quietly to his feet. "I guess I should wake up DemiDevimon."

"Don't," Casey said, holding up his hand. He pushed off against the wall, using it to slide into a standing position. "We don't need to wake them; they're sleeping so peacefully. Besides, the Crests can't be more than a little ways beyond the barrier. It's not like anything bad can happen."

"Well," Cameron thought, contemplating Casey's words. "If it really is only a little ways from the barrier, I guess there isn't really anything to worry about."

"Exactly," Casey said. "Now all we have to do is get out of here without waking anyone up."

-

"Get back here!"

Blake jumped slightly. "Did you hear that, Conomon?"

"Yeah."

"That must be the next stop," Blake mused.

"I guess," Conomon agreed. "I wonder what kind of memory it'll be this time."

"I know that the bike on the bridge was a memory," Blake thought, "but I'm still not sure about the thing in the classroom."

"A fake memory?" Conomon wondered. "Is that even possible?"

The boat bumped against the next shore.

"Not sure, but we're here," Blake replied.

"I said get back here, you piece of slime!" the angry voice repeated.

"There it is again," Conomon observed passively as Blake took him into his arms and stepped out of the boat.

"He sounds kinda ticked," Blake muttered worriedly.

Blake carried Conomon in his arms as he stepped through the fog. Slowly, a brick wall materialized in the mist.

"Hello?" Blake called, but it apparently fell upon deaf ears.

"Stop it!"

"Just get back here, freak!"

Blake saw in disgust that the angry boy was the bully from before, and the one being chased was none other than his younger self, hardly, if any, older than the last remembered self he encountered.

"Oh, man, Conomon, this looks bad!"

"Agreed!"

Younger Blake backed involuntarily away from the advancing bully.

"I've got you now!" the bully growled menacingly, pounding his fist into the palm of his other hand threateningly. "I'm gonna pound you so hard for making me look like such a doofus!"

"Look, I didn't mean anything by it!" young Blake defended himself, his hands in the air. "I just didn't think you should be picking on that kid!"

"It wasn't your place to decide!" the bully spat.

"I don't want any trouble!" young Blake pleaded, trying not to sound as helpless as he was feeling.

"Too bad! Trouble's coming to you!" The bully pushed up his sleeve as he advanced on young Blake, his fist ready.

He froze.

"Wh - what happened?" young Blake stuttered, shocked.

Blake, used to this by now, stepped forward. For the first time, young Blake noticed him.

"Who are you? Where did you come from?"

Blake laughed. "Those questions are both kinda hard to answer without really confusing you, so let's just not worry about them."

Young Blake stared at him uncertainly, but decided he seemed friendly enough. "Why are you here?"

Smiling, Blake replied, "I'm here to help you."

"Really?"

"Really," Blake said. "You're in kind of a tough situation."

"Yeah," young Blake admitted. "I don't really know what to do."

"Well," Blake suggested, "why don't you list your options. A good way to make decisions is to think about all of your options and then decide which one has the best consequences."

"The way I see it, I can either get beaten up or fight back, but I don't like either of those!"

Blake nodded knowingly. "It definitely wouldn't be cool to get beaten up, but I understand that you don't want to fight, either, because you don't want to have anyone accusing you of being the bully."

"Yeah," young Blake agreed.

"This is definitely not a fun situation to be in," Blake said sagely, "and, I have to say, this bit of advice isn't what most people want to hear."

"What is it?" young Blake asked apprehensively.

"I think you should walk away."

"I _can't!_" young Blake objected. "He won't let me pass!"

"I understand," Blake said. "That's why I said it was going to be difficult."

"You don't mean - "

"Yeah," Blake said quietly. "I think you have to let him hit you and then just walk past him."

Young Blake processed this idea, staring fearfully at the frozen form of the bully, ready to strike. "I - I definitely don't want to get hit."

Blake nodded sadly, sorrowful that his young self had to go through this, whether it was really a memory or simply an illusion. "I don't want you to get hit, but there's no need for you to resort to violence in this situation when you can find a way out."

"I don't like it," young Blake muttered, "but I guess I can try."

"I'm sorry it's not easier," Blake told himself sincerely. "I wish there was a better way out, but sometimes you just have to take things as they are."

As young Blake marched back to face the bully, the two of them faded with the brick wall into the mist.

"Well, Blake, I have to say, I think you handled that pretty well," Conomon said proudly.

"Thanks, Conomon, but I really didn't like giving out that piece of advice," Blake muttered. "It really took him a lot of courage to actually do that."

"It took you a lot of courage to give the advice in the first place."

Blake smiled. "Thanks, buddy."

"You know, it seems as if all of these visions or memories or mirages or whatevers have been kind of the same."

"Yeah," Blake agreed. "I think I know what Piximon wanted me to learn from all of this. All of these visions have to do with different aspects of courage. In one, I had to learn to get back up even if it seemed like it would never work out."

"Then you learned to stand up for what's right, even if it's scary and a little bit dangerous."

"And I had to learn that some battles aren't supposed to be fought."

"Not only that," Conomon reflected, "but you had to teach all of those things to yourself."

"Hm," Blake murmured. "I can't believe it. Piximon taught me about courage, but not how I would've expected."

"How so?"

"I would've expected him to teach me how to have courage, but instead he taught me that I already have courage inside of me and all I need to do is call on it for it to come out."

"Yeah!" Conomon agreed excitedly. "You've been worried that you didn't really know what courage was, but all you really needed to do was find the courage inside of yourself!"

Blake smiled, happy tears shining in his blue eyes. "Thank you so much for helping me along the way, Conomon. I couldn't have done it without you!" He wrapped Conomon into his arms, hugging tightly. As he hugged the Digimon, his partner began to glow with golden light.

Blake didn't notice through his closed eyes, but he felt Conomon moving and opened them - and gasped.

"Conomon, you're - !"

"Gizamon again!" the newly-Digivolved Gizamon cheered happily. "I was able to Digivolve back into my Rookie level!"

"Alright!" Blake cheered. "I'm so happy to see you back to your old self!"

"Thanks!" Gizamon laughed. "It's good to be back to my Rookie stage!"

"Let's go share all the great stuff we've learned with the others!" Blake suggested merrily.

"Yeah!"

Blake put his foot in the boat. "All aboard towards Piximon's mountain!"

-

Casey stepped confidently through the barrier between Piximon's domain and the Server desert. Cameron followed close behind, wringing his hands nervously. It was now chilly in the Server night-time, with a clear sky, beautiful, twinkling stars, and a bright, full moon.

"Are you _sure _this is safe?" Cameron whispered.

"It's fine," Casey replied cooly. "But keep a look out, just in case."

Cameron stared at his Tag pulling him towards his Crest. He was pleased to see that Casey's Tag pulled in the same direction. "It looks like our Crests are hidden in the same place."

"Too bad we don't know where that place is," Casey muttered.

They moved forward, following the pull of their Crests. It was pulling them in the direction of the well.

"I hope they aren't too far away," Cameron muttered.

As they passed by the well, the Crests turned so that they again pointed towards the well.

"I'm starting to think I know where our Crests are," Casey smirked, staring thoughtfully at the well.

"Are they at the bottom?" Cameron wondered aloud.

_How would I know? _Casey wanted to spit back sarcastically, but decided to go with, "There's only one way to find out."

"And how exactly do you plan to do that?" Cameron asked.

"We can stand on the bucket and lower ourselves down on the rope. If we work together, we'll be able to hold both our weights easily."

"What if the bucket breaks off of the rope?" Cameron questioned, a hint of worry in his voice.

"Sometimes you just have to take risks," Casey replied, tugging on the rope to make sure it was secure. He began to draw up the bucket.

Cameron didn't want Casey to mock him for weakness and so ignored his inhibitions about both of them venturing into the well at the same time, for the well appeared to be quite on in years.

"I'll hold the rope while you step in," Casey said, holding it steady and offering his hand to support Cameron. Cameron took the offered hand and stepped anxiously onto the bucket. It wobbled, but appeared securely tethered.

"Now I'm going to get on and you need to make sure you help me hold it steady," Casey directed. Cameron clutched the rope tightly, thinking about how there was no way he could hold the two of them on his own; Casey swung himself over the rocks of the well, ducking under the wooden post to which the rope was connected, and joined Cameron hardly after Cameron had finished thinking these thoughts.

"Ready to go?" Casey asked.

Cameron nodded, still worriedly contemplating the strength of the old well's pulley system.

Casey began lowering the two of them. Cameron made to help, but it was obvious from the lack of strain he felt that Casey was bearing the majority of the work.

As they lowered into the complete darkness, their Tags the only source of light, two brilliant illuminations met their eyes on either side of the well. From one wall of the well, a brilliant blue light shone. From the other, a deep royal purple.

"Those must be the Crests!" Cameron exclaimed, all inhibitions gone now that the objective was so close at hand.

The boys worked their way slowly down to the lights until each boy was facing one of them, Cameron facing blue and Casey facing purple.

"They're beautiful," Casey remarked in awe.

"Definitely," Cameron agreed. Their Tags shone brilliantly, accompanying the brilliant colored lights before them. Then, the bricks from which each of the colored lights was emitting shrank to what the children now recognized as the size of a Crest. Both the purple- and blue-glowing Crests circled the boys mystically, shining their light in their circle, leaving little tails of light behind themselves.

"So beautiful," Casey reiterated.

Finally, they stopped circling, the purple Crest floating in front of Cameron and the blue in front of Casey. Both boys' Tags floated out to meet them, the Crests sliding neatly into place. The newly-filled Tags fell back against the chests of their owners, their light fading slowly.

Casey's blue Crest symbol was circular, with curved points coming from the left and right. The left's point curved downwards, and the right's curved upwards. The circle was hollow, and a line ran through the middle; beginning at the top right of the circle, it fell almost vertically downwards until it got just above the middle, where it slashed diagonally downwards until it was on the left half of the circle, and continued vertically downwards to meet with the bottom left of the circle. The writing on the side said "Crest of Friendship".

Cameron's purple Crest symbol consisted of two circles, one larger than the other, sitting side-by-side and connected by a short, thin line. Both circles were hollow. Within the larger circle on the left was another hollow circle. Within the smaller circle on the right was a small circle, this one not hollow. The writing on the side said "Crest of Knowledge".

"Cool!" Casey said. "The Crests of Friendship and Knowledge!"

"Fitting, I'd say," Cameron smiled.

"Yeah," Casey agreed, as the last of the light faded from their Tags. "Let's get out of this hole and back to Piximon's place. Maybe we can get a few hours of sleep before everyone wakes up and we tell them the good news."

"I don't think I'll be able to sleep a wink while I'm this excited," Cameron laughed.

The boys began tugging on the rope, hauling themselves up with some difficulty. By the time they reached the top of the well, they were slightly sweaty and a bit out of breath.

"You can get out first," Casey said. Cameron obliged, and held the rope while Casey got out.

"I can't believe we were able to get _both _of our Crests at once!" Cameron said cheerfully. "It's so great!"

"Yeah," Casey agreed. "That means we're suddenly two giant steps closer to making it back home."

Cameron nodded. "And it's been quite a while since we've been there."

Before he could do the exact calculation of how many days they'd spent in the Digital World, the earth shook beneath their feet with a terrible pounding noise, like the footsteps of a very large creature, and a roar met their ears.

"What's that?" Casey yelled, looking around frantically.

"Something big and scary," Cameron muttered, eyeing his surroundings as well.

"There!" Casey pointed.

Advancing towards them was a large dinosaur. Though he was shrouded in darkness, they could still make out his fearsome features. Plus, it was hard to miss the fact that he was the size of a small apartment complex.

Its skin was deep, vibrant red, with a white stomach and some slashes of black coloring.. It had long muscular legs and arms, and a massive tail. From the top of its head to the tip of its tail it had spiked, green plates. On both feet and both hands it had long, sharp, grey claws. It's blue eyes were fixed on the two DigiDestined boys, and its mouth was open in a battle-roar, revealing a mouthful of sharp, dangreous teeth.

"Who is that?" Cameron asked in horrified awe.

"No idea," Casey murmured. "I'd rather not stick around to get acquainted."

"What should we do, though," Cameron asked, noticing the hunger in his eyes. "We can't beat him! Our Digimon are at Piximon's house, asleep!"

"He's a big guy!" Casey growled tensely. He looked to the barrier desperately. If the big dinosaur kept going at this pace, they may just be able to make it.

"Any ideas?" Cameron wailed helplessly.

"Run!" Casey cried, grabbing Cameron's arm and pulling him along as he erupted into a sprint towards the barrier. Since it was a barrier, he figured it would keep the big Digimon out. All they had to do was make it in time.

Their feet pounded in the dry desert sand, the cool air blowing against their face; their breaths came in gasps, their throats sore; they struggled to stay at a break-neck sprint.

And with each massive step, the Digimon came ever closer.

"Almost there!" Casey gasped painfully, more to reassure himself than Cameron.

"Yeah!" Cameron agreed. "We're gonna make it!"

With an angry roar, the monstrous Digimon watched his prey disappear through the portal.

Cameron and Casey, bent over and panting, began to laugh happily. "We made it!" Casey cheered.

With a resounding boom, the Digimon smashed against the barrier, roaring angrily.

"That made me jump," Cameron admitted, laughing. "I almost thought we were in danger!"

And with a sound of shattering glass, the giant Digimon broke the barrier between the desert and Piximon's jungle.

"Oh, crap," Casey muttered darkly.

"Volcanic Strike!"

The fireball attack came from nowhere, smashing into the Digimon. He roared in pain and anger, searching for the source of his attacker.

Blake joined the other boys, pulling them into the jungle foliage. "Monochromon will take it from here."

"How did you get here?" Casey asked.

"How did Conomon Digivolve to Champion?" Cameron added.

Blake held up his hands to silence their questions. "Piximon sent me into this wierd cave for my training to teach me how to have Courage. When I'd learned that, Conomon Digivolved to Gizamon. Gizamon and I were heading back to Piximon's place when we saw this guy - Gizamon called him Tyrannomon - and decided it didn't look like he was just out for a midnight stroll."

"It's really lucky you caught us," Cameron gasped. "We could've been goners!"

"No kidding," Blake said. "Why were you out so late? And without your Digimon?"

Casey and Cameron both held up the trinkets round their necks. "We found our Crests," Casey replied, allowing some of the pride of this accomplishment to seep into his voice.

Blake stared at the two Crests. "Well . . . I guess that's a pretty good reason. I just wish you hadn't come out without your Digimon."

"Yeah, we were kinda thinking the same thing," Casey muttered sarcastically, laughing slightly.

"No worries," Blake shrugged. "Gizamon warned me that Tyrannomon's tough, but, now that the two of us are back in action, I don't think he'll stand a chance!"

"Fire Blast!" With a roar, Tyrannomon unleashed a stream of flames from his mouth. The orange fire engulfed Monochromon, washing over his black armor.

"Oh, man!" Casey cried.

"That's not good!" Cameron agreed.

"Don't worry about it," Blake said calmly. "Monochromon's armor's the toughest around. No way that Tyrannomon creep's going to get anywhere near my Digimon!"

As if he'd heard, Monochromon surged forward. "Slamming Attack!"

Tyrannomon's Fire Blast attack ended abruptly when Monochromon rammed Tyrannomon hard in the stomach. Tyrannomon's claws gripped Monochromon's shell, trying to force him backwards, but Monochromon surged forward, roaring with immense strength. Tyrannomon pushed his feet hard into the ground, trying not only to push Monochromon back, but also simply to counteract his forward thrust towards the desert.

"Get him, Monochromon!" Blake cheered, joined by his DigiDestined comrades. "He's got nothing on you!"

Tyrannomon exerted all his strength, pushing Monochromon back towards the trees.

"Don't give up!" Blake called.

"No way!" Monochromon grunted. He opened his mouth onto Tyrannomon's stomach. "Volcanic Strike!"

Caught completely off-guard, Tyrannomon roared in anger, anguish, and pain, as he shot backwards away from Monochromon, a huge fireball propelling him back by his stomach.

"I never would have guessed something that large could fly that fast," Cameron observed in awe.

"Wow," Casey breathed.

"Monochromon's amazing!" Blake agreed, saying this loud enough that his Digimon partner could hear.

Tyrannomon crashed to the desert sand, sliding along as the flames from Monochromon's attack washed over his body. His great mass kicked up a large cloud of dust and small rocks, obscuring him from view. The children watched until the dust cleared, pleased to see the large Digimon was either unconscious or at least, for some other reason, not on his feet yet.

"How can we make sure he doesn't come back through the gate?" Casey asked worriedly. "I don't want that guy sneaking up on us while we're asleep."

As if the barrier had heard him and was capable of response, it began to slowly close.

"It's closing itself," Cameron observed contentedly. "In fact, I'd bet that once it's invisible to the eyes of anyone out in the desert, it'll be completely inacsessible until it's opened again."

"I hope you're right," Blake muttered. "Though I wouldn't be surprised if you are."

"Especially with the Crest of Knowledge," Casey smiled.

"Come on, kids," Monochromon called. "Climb on my back and I'll take the three of you back to Piximon's place."

"Thanks, Monochromon," Blake grinned, patting the large Digimon fondly on the nose.

Casey and Cameron hoisted themselves up on Monochromon's back, followed closely by Blake. He sat in front of the two of them. "Let's get back, Monochromon."

-

"You need to be a bit more careful," Piximon advised. "If you aren't, you could find yourself in a bit too much trouble for you to handle, and I won't be there to bail you out."

"Of course," Casey agreed, choosing not to think about his reckless behavior the night before.

"Remember always to be a team," Piximon continued. "Without each other, you have very little strength, but with each other, you're nearly invinsible."

"Always," Gizamon smiled, looking fondly at Blake.

"And, don't forget what you learned in the cave," Piximon said to Blake.

Blake nodded. "I'll try not to."

Piximon nodded at the kids and smiled. "I'm glad I got to put my two-cents into your adventure." Sniffing, he wiped a tear from one of his beady black eyes. "I'll still worry about you kids, but I know you're together and you trust in yourselves. Stay together and you'll go far."

Sniffing, he waved to the children and flew back into his dimension and the portal began to close. Before it could, Piximon called out to them, "Remember always keep learning! Take advantage of every opportunity and, no matter how glum things may seem, always realize that one of the greatest teachers of all is failure. Keep this in mind an you'll go far!" Then, the hole that showed the lush jungle in which Piximon made his dwelling closed, leaving the children with nothing to stare at but more endless desert.

"I still think you should've woken us up," Prairiemon snapped at his partner. He'd been none too happy about being left behind the night before and was determined not to forgive Casey until lunch time.

"I agree," DemiDevimon said. "You should never go out alone."

"Yes, of course," Cameron said wearily.

"Come on, guys," Meggy laughed. "They're sorry."

"Yeah," the boys agreed.

"No worries, guys," Blake laughed. "We've got a full day ahead of us!"

"Yeah, more exciting walking through more exciting nothing," Becca mumbled disheartedly.

"Hey, no problem!" Blake smiled. "Even if you don't like what we're doing, everything's a little bit better when you're with your friends!"

"Yeah," Gizamon agreed.

Blake nodded. "And what better group of friends could you wish for?" He motioned to all those standing round him. "We're here with the best of the best, top of the top, _creme de la creme_!"

Becca smiled slightly. "I guess you're right," she said, looking happily at Otamamon. "It's not really all that bad."

"That's the spirit!" Blake cheered. He began walking.

"We only have three more Crests to find," Cameron added helpfully. "Becca's, Meggy's, and Rainey's."

"That's right," Casey nodded. "Then we'll finally be able to get back home."

"Exactly," Blake said happily. "Now, on to more Crests! On to more adventure!"

-

Now that Blake and Gizamon have reforged their friendship and reaffirmed their confidence, things are looking up. But Etemon's still out there and after the DigiDestined. What new tricks does he have hidden up his sleeve? Will the DigiDestined be able to heed Piximon's advice, or will Etemon be able to tear them apart? Find out in the next Digimon: Digital Monsters!


	19. Kokatorimon's Desert Cruise

A/N: I have a new site up-and-running, with information on this fan-fic and seasons 1 - 3 of Digimon. While I'm obviously still loading information, I wanted to let you know about the site so you can check it out and tell me what you think. WARNING: Spoilers! The site is can be found by clicking on my penname; it's in there somewhere.

A/N: Also, since the season 2 fanale is coming in three chapters, I wanted to get your thoughts now. Who is your favorite DigiDestined? Who is your favorite Digimon? Who is your favorite human-Digimon team? Which Digimon has the best Digivolutions? Who would make the best couple? Which chapter is your favorite/the best? Which is worst? Submit your answers to these and any other opinions you have about this story to me in a review or an e-mail and I'll announce the winners for best chapter, worst chapter, best DigiDestined, best Digimon, best team, best couple, best Digivolutions, and whatever else you come up with in my author profile something like a month after posting the season 2 fanale.

A/N: Thanks to Broken Starlight (now Lady Dragoness), LunarSphinx, and AlforceZero for the reviews! You guys rock!

-

Reviews: This will be my last reviews section, since I read that it was illegal to respond in author's notes to reviews in your chapters, and then Broken Starlight reminded me of this as well. So, I'll say good-bye to the tradition . . . let's have a moment of silence . . . anyhoo, responding to reviews en-chapter was one of my favorite things to do, but since it's banned, I'll just use the reply button.

-

**The Creative Process - The Digimon**

Well, as you've noticed, my Digivolution lines are a bit jumbled and I have some Baby forms standing in for In-Trainings and some Armors standing in for Rookies, etc. The explaination for this is, when I was first planning this story years ago, all I had to use to choose the Digimon from was two of those sheets with Digimon names and small pictures on them that come with the little itty-bitty action figure things, and a poster from a Fox Kids magazine (not much). Also, I'd never seen most of the Digimon on the two things, so I didn't know their powers, their levels, or their Digivolutions, so I just picked ones that I liked that looked enough like each other to make sense and, voila, the Digivolution lines of this story happened. Ironically, I stumbled across a very good, reliable DigiDex right after I'd written the first chapter of this story - just too late to change the Digivolution lines to logical, correct levels. But, I'm waving my power as the author to say that I've altered some Digimon, but that's my right. Sorry if I've confused anybody, though; didn't mean to. But, that's where the weird Digivolution lines and the incorrect Levels come from. I have, however, done quite a large bit of correcting, changing, and enhancing for Digimon above the Champion level, as well as worked on the Digimon appearing after this series.

-

**Previously in Digimon: Digital Monsters**

This is Meggy. After SkullGreymon attacked us, Blake was afraid it would happen again, so he swore to himself that he wouldn't let Conomon Digivolve. We were walking through the desert, all tired out, when we were attacked by the two Flybeemon who ran away from us when we first arrived in the Digital World. We were saved by a guy named Piximon, a cute little Ultimate-Level Digimon also known as the Legendary Trainer. He took us to his home and showed us the meaning of teamwork. While we slaved away, Blake and Conomon took a boat ride down memory lane, and Blake realized that he had to have courage. Casey and Cameron snuck away by themselves in the night to look for their Crests. Casey got the Crest of Friendship and Cameron got the Crest of Knowledge. They were attacked by Tyrannomon, but Blake and Monochromon were able to save them. After that, we said goodbye to Piximon and continued on our quest to find the remaining three Crests.

-

**CHAPTER NINTEEN**

**Kokatorimon's Desert Cruise**

"Oh, Otamamon, will it ever not be hot again?" Becca sighed, holding her Digimon partner in her arms.

"I don't know, Becca," Otamamon replied, her voice scratchy. "I just hope we can find some water soon."

"Oh, that's right!" Becca exclaimed. "I'd forgotten you're a tadpole Digimon! This heat must be tormenting you!"

Otamamon nodded weakly. "But it's okay. As long as I'm around to make sure you're safe, I'm fine."

"Oh, Otamamon!" Becca smiled, her eyes shining with joyful tears.

"If only we had some shade," Meggy pondered aloud. "Then we could at least enjoy the slightly cooler atmosphere."

"And get out of this blaring sun," Rabbitmon agreed heartily.

"But there's no shade anywhere," Blake muttered sullenly.

"Hey!" Becca exclaimed. "I'd bet _that _would give off a lot of shade!"

"What are you talking about?" Casey sighed wearily.

"_That_!" Becca pointed. The rest of them followed her gaze.

To their amazement, they saw, shimmering in the heat of the desert, a giant cactus with a large pink flower on the top.

"Where did that come from?" Blake wondered. "I was just looking around a few minutes ago and didn't see a thing."

"I guess you just don't look hard enough!" Becca giggled smugly. "Come on! Otamamon needs some rest!"

"I think all of our Digimon are getting pretty tired," Meggy observed.

"So am I!" Rainey complained.

"Yeah, we all need a rest," Casey sighed. "And some shade would be really nice."

"Just as long as one of Etemon's goons doesn't attack us while we're resting," Adam muttered.

"It's settled, then!" Becca exclaimed, and she shot off toward the cactus, followed by the others. Their breath came in ragged, shallow gasps, as they were already sweaty and tired from their trek that day. The air shimmered as they ran, what little moisture there was evaporating alarmingly quickly into the atmosphere. The sun beat down on all their heads, burning the back of their necks.

"We're almost there!" Becca exclaimed, pointing to the cactus. "Just a little ways left!"

"Wait!" Cameron called, causing everyone to come to an abrupt halt.

"What - what's wrong?" Blake gasped, taking in deep breaths.

"Yeah, what is it?" DemiDevimon asked from his comfortable perch atop Cameron's head. He may not have been doing as much work or suffering quite as much as the others, but he was just as eager to get into the shade and away from the sun.

"There's a problem," Cameron stated. "Look there."

They looked at the cactus. "Yeah, that's where we're going," Meggy said, trying to hold back the angry sarcasm in her voice. The shade was _so close!_

"You guys aren't thinking this through all the way," Cameron muttered. "Look at the ground _around _the cactus."

They spent a few seconds peering at the ground, alternating between feeling stupid for not seeing what Cameron seemingly implied was so obvious and feeling angry at him for keeping them from the shade.

Sighing tiredly, Cameron gave them an answer. "There's no shadow. The cactus has no shadow."

"What?" arose an indignant cry, but when they looked they could see that it was true. There was no shadow. There was no shade.

"It must be simply a mirage," Cameron continued in his observations. "What's wierd to me is, how is this cactus mirage still visible? Mirages are supposed to be difficult to see and disappear as you get nearer. This mirage, while clearly not there because the light isn't forming a shadow of it, hasn't disappeared though we're very near to it and it doesn't seem blurry at all."

"Maybe it really is there?" Blake suggested.

"No, there's no shadow," Cameron explained again. "If there's no shadow, there's nothing the light is bouncing off of, there's nothing there!"

"How could a mirage just sit there so clearly without actually being there?" Blake continued. "And why is it a cactus?"

"Does anything in this wierd world work the way it's supposed to?" Casey interjected.

"It just doesn't make sense."

"No offense," Casey continued, "but neither has most of the other stuff that's happened."

"You have a good point," Cameron allowed.

"Hey, look," Becca called, pointing to the cactus. They gasped as the cactus became hazy, fading out of existence.

"How unnatural," Cameron muttered unhappily.

"Wait, what's _that?_" Becca called with renewed vigor, pointing to something white in the distance that had been hidden behind where the cactus mirage had been.

"I can't tell from this distance," Meggy said. "We'll have to get closer."

"No way," Blake said. "I don't want to go on another wild mirage chase!"

"To be fair," Casey cut in, "it's not like we really have anyplace better to go."

"Yeah, why not chase mirages?" Rainey asked, warming up to the idea of a game.

"We're just wandering around anyway, waiting for one of the remaining Crests to trigger the Tags."

Blake sighed angrily. "Listen, I'd just really rather not run out after another mirage again!"

"We have to go _somewhere_," Casey muttered.

"Let's just check," Cameron suggested. "DemiDevimon, fly up and see what it is."

"You got it!" DemiDevimon said, soaring quickly into the air. He soon returned to his perch.

"It's a boat," he reported. "A big boat, really nice, shadow and all."

"A _boat!_" Becca squealed. "That's even better than a stupid cactus!"

"Come on, Becca, we don't want to go rushing off into anything," Casey cautioned her.

"You were the one trying to get us to go investigate," Becca countered.

"Yeah, I wanted to see what it was and if it was real. I didn't say we should get on board and party it up," Casey explained patiently.

"I don't care what you say," Becca said after a moment. "We have our very own luxury cruise liner here to save us from this awful heat! Why wouldn't we want to take advantage of it?"  
"That's just what worries me," Casey replied. "It could be a trap set by Etemon."

"Remember the mansion on File Island?" Cameron reminded her.

"Yeah," Adam added. "That was a great place and we walked right in, and it ended up as literally nothing more than a big trap."

"Well, I say that Etemon might be strong and he might have lots of different Digimon working for him across this big desert, but he can't make mirages and stuff like Devimon, so what have we to fear?"

"Those 'different Digimon' you mentioned, that's what," Casey replied a bit shortly.

"You're all being way too paranoid about all this!" Becca cried. "There's nothing to be afraid of on that boat! Besides, Otamamon needs some rest and water, and that boat looks like the perfect place to find both. That's enough for me to want to risk it." She squeezed Otamamon slightly, affirming how much she cared about her.

"Fine," Casey gave in. He looked around at the group. "We really could all use a rest and some water, and I suppose the risks are outweighed by our needs."

"Yeah," Blake agreed. "It'll be fine."

"We need to make sure nobody goes anywhere alone, though," Casey instructed.

"Fine," Becca said; the tone of her voice suggested that she hadn't even heard him. She began walking briskly towards the boat. The others followed, while Casey continued to give directions aggravatedly.

"What I mean is, everybody should always be with their Digimon and at least another person and Digimon. We can't let our guard down."

"It's okay, Casey," Blake said. "We'll be fine."

"I just don't want people being careless and overconfident," Casey replied angrily, stopping in his tracks. Blake stopped too, as did both their Digimon; the others continued walking.

As the others got farther away, Casey continued. "I got careless and overconfident, and I took Cameron along with us and we almost got killed."

"Yeah, but this is different," Blake said.

"We can't afford to take the risk in saying that it is," Casey retorted. "We don't know anything about this except that it's real or a really good mirage. That's it. It could be totally legit, and everything will be fine, but if we get in there and it is some kind of trap, I want us all to have a pre-approved escape route. I'm not taking chances here!"

"I'm not trying to either, but you're being a bit nit-picky."

"Listen, I want to get home!" Casey cried. "That's my objective, and I plan on all of us getting there _together_. That means we're careful, that means we avoid risks, that means we run instead of fight when we can, that means we do everything to stay out of trouble until we're safely back at home."

"Casey, you make it sound like you're the one that's watching out for everybody and I'm trying to get everyone killed," Blake growled, trying his best to hold back his anger.

"That's not what I meant," Casey muttered. "I'm just . . . I just worry, and I want to try and protect everyone."

Blake sighed. "Listen, I'm into that too, man. And I know you're really trying to look out for your brother."

"What?" Casey erupted suddenly, catching himself and toning it down before continuing. "What are you saying? I'm looking out for everyone, not secretly just Rainey!"

"That's not what I meant," Blake said, putting his hands up defensively. "I didn't mean he was the only one you cared about, I just meant that I think you're kind of overdoing it because you're worried about him."

Casey sniffed indignantly, kicking a pebble away and focusing his eyes on it. "I'm looking out for everyone, not just the twerp."

"Twerp?"

"Yeah, he's a little annoying," Casey spat out, looking up quickly into Blake's eyes with the look of a challenge in his eyes.

"You make it sound like you'd prefer it if he wasn't around," Blake murmured.

Casey jumped back, as if Blake's words had slapped him in the face, and he shook his head to clear his thoughts. After a moment, he replied, "Maybe I would." He walked off towards the ship without another word. Blake understood that he didn't mean it.

-

"This place is splendid!" Becca exclaimed happily.

They were standing in a large hallway, with potted plants sitting on ledges and doorways as far as one could see.

"I want to explore every room!" Rainey said excitedly.

"I wonder if they've got any food in this place," Adam wondered aloud, absentmindedly touching the white wallpaper.

"Only one way to find out!" Rainey laughed, running down the hallway with Kokomon, looking inside random doors.

"I guess we could go look somewhere else," Becca suggested, gesturing to herself and Meggy.

"Yeah," Cameron agreed. "There are two more stories. You can check one of those."

"Let's check the floor above this one," Meggy suggested.

"Sounds like a plan," Rabbitmon chimed.

The girls wandered off. Moments later, Casey walked into view at the end of the hall.

"Hey, squirt," he said to Rainey, ruffling his hair as he walked past. "What are you guys up to?"

"Looking for food!" Rainey replied, continuing about his business.

"That's cool," Casey said. "You wanna go check somewhere else, Cameron?"

Cameron was a bit surprised that he wanted to go with him and not Rainey, but he agreed nonetheless, and the two of them went to explore.

"So I guess it's the three of us, then," Blake noted, smiling at Adam.

"You . . . you don't think Casey's right, do you?" Adam asked.

"What do you mean?"

"You don't think he's right about this being a trap?" Adam said, looking around nervously.

Blake laughed. "If it is, I don't think Etemon would've let us get this far."

"Don't worry, Adam," Kunemon said, inching down from his perch across Adam's back to look his partner in the face. "I'm here to protect you!"

Adam broke into a smile. "Of course! Duh, I have nothing to worry about with you around!"

"That's right," Kunemon said smugly, scuttling back to sit in a more comfortable position.

"So, we just gonna sit here until Rainey gets done rummaging through all of the random empty rooms?" Blake wondered aloud.

"Looks like," Adam muttered.

Rainey continued about his business, happily giggling, Kokomon joining in the fun whenever he could.

-

"Ugh, all this walking through the desert is tiring me out," Becca moaned as she and Meggy walked along a corridor. She was certainly happy to be on a boat with some shade. "I love being here with Otamamon, but if this keeps up I'm ready to call it quits and head home."

"Too bad we don't know how to do that," Meggy sighed, trying not to sound cynical.

"But these Crest things are supposed to help, right?" Becca said, a hint of worry in her voice.

"They do something," Meggy murmured unenthusiastically, flicking the empty Tag hanging from her neck.

"The Crests are said to be very powerful," Otamamon inserted. "I'm not sure exactly what they're capable of, but it is possible that they're strong enough to get us home."

"I hope so," Becca pouted. She waved her arms about in the air, talking grandly. "I can't _wait_ to get a wonderful bubble bath!"

"Uh . . . Becca?" Meggy asked, looking at her friend, who was staring off into space. "Are you okay?"

"A bubble bath!" Becca smiled. "Running hot, soothing water, and then making it soapy and foamy! Sitting there, leaning my haid against the tub, just relaxed!"

"Becca?" Otamamon inquired meekly. "Are you still here?"

"Bubble baths are so wonderful!" Becca cried happily and suddenly. "I want one so badly!"

"Then I guess we'd better find our Crests," Meggy suggested, trying to get back to business.

"Wait," Becca said, holding up a hand and stopping Meggy before she could say more. "Do you hear that?"

"Hear . . . what?" Meggy asked.

"I hear it," Rabbitmon said, her large ears twitching.

"What is it?" Meggy wondered.

"It's water!" Becca squealed, rushing through an open doorway nearby.

"Wait, Becca, don't go off without us!" Otamamon cried, as she, Meggy, and Rabbitmon ran after their friend.

They found her standing in the nearby doorway, gaping in glorified awe.

Before them was a well-lit bathroom with a huge shower. Water was dripping from the shower head slowly, which was the sound that had drawn Becca to it. There was a large mirror with lights along the sides above a gleaming sink. The smell of vanilla filled the air.

"It's . . . so beautiful!" Becca breathed, awestruck.

"It's . . . a bathroom," Meggy replied, unable to hide how unimpressed she was.

"Don't you understand what this _means?_" Becca said hysterically, whirling to face her friend and gripping her by the shoulders.

"Becca, I think you've been in the heat too long."

Becca gave her a disdainful look before continuing. "This means that _we can take showers!_"

This statement was met with a blank stare from Meggy.

"Showers!" Becca reiterated with even more excitement. What was so difficult to understand about such a beautiful statement?

Apparently everything, because Meggy continued to stare in an increasingly skeptical way, wondering internally whether or not she should try and see if there was some kind of medication at hand.

"Fine, don't say anything," Becca huffed, turning and striding into the bathroom. "I'm going to take a shower."

"What?" Meggy replied incredulously.

"You heard me."

"You don't even have a towel, or soap, or anything. How do you expect to shower?"

"Just the running water would be enough, to wash off some of this grossness, but, to answer your question, there's an entire stack of towels here with a big bottle of vanilla soap sitting on top of it."

Meggy peeked inside the room and saw that it was true.

"Fine," she sighed weakly. "What are you planning to do?"

"Take a shower," Becca said.

"Well what am I supposed to do?" Meggy challenged.

"You can wait," Becca said snottily, and turned into the bathroom. Otamamon scampered in after her and she shut the door, humming a cheerful tune to herself.

Meggy turned to Rabbitmon, rolling her eyes. "She can be the best friend one moment and the biggest idiot the next."

Rabbitmon chuckled at this as Meggy strode to the nearby railing, looking out at the desert stretching for miles. Rabbitmon joined her.

"I guess we'll just wait here, then," Meggy conceded, more to herself than to Rabbitmon.

"Guess so," Rabbitmon said, trying to find something interesting in the dismal landscape stretching before them.

They stood there in silent thought for some time before Rabbitmon's ears twitched, picking up a faint sound. The sound was not, however, faint enough for Meggy's ears to miss it.

"What is that?" Meggy asked, walking towards the far away sound.

"Be careful, Meggy," Rabbitmon said, bounding after her.

-

Casey and Cameron, along with their Digimon partners, came upon a most unexpected and welcome surprise: An on-deck pool!

"Awesome," was all Casey could think of to say before, in almost a rush, he had stripped off his shirt and left his shoes behind, leaping into the pool.

Cameron and the Digimon stared after him, astonished. Casey's head burst through the surface of the water, and he looked back at Cameron, beaming. "Come on in, the water's _great!_"

Cameron moved closer to the pool, sitting on the edge of a beach chair nearby. DemiDevimon perched on his head, making sure to fan out his wings for shade, while Prairiemon stayed at a slightly further distance.

"Guys, come on, it's awesome," Casey urged.

"Why the sudden change in heart?" Cameron asked suddenly.

"Huh?"

"You always seem to be the one trying to keep us on task and stop us from getting sidetracked, and all of a sudden you're jumping into a pool without warning?"

Casey thought for a moment. "I guess I am kinda strict sometimes, but sometimes you've just gotta chill, and this is one of those times."

Cameron secretly thought that Casey might have gotten tired of looking after everyone so much, and was just looking for a respite from the stress of responsibility for the sweet little time he could afford it.

"Enough questions, right?" Casey said after a few seconds. "Are you gonna get in or not?"

"Not," Cameron replied.

"Why?"

"Maybe I just don't feel like it. Besides, swimming annoys me, because I have to take my glasses off and then I can't see."

Casey was disappointed at this, muttering, "Yeah, I guess I didn't think of that."

"I don't like to get my wings wet," DemiDevimon offered at Casey's expectant stare.

"Sorry Casey," Prairiemon said in turn. "I'm still not completely comfortable with water."

"What?" Casey countered. "I thought you got over that when you Digivolved to Leomon for the first time at that lake and beat Seadramon?"

"I'm not as afraid as I was then, I just prefer to stay on land."

"You made it across the entire ocean okay to come to Server from File Island," Casey pressed.

"I'm sorry," Prairiemon apologized, though his voice made it evident that this was the last word. "I just would rather not. I'm happy where I am."

"You guys," Casey sighed, downcast. He hoisted himself from the pool, standing before them with water dripping off his shoulders and arms and hands, which fell to the deck to singe.

"Sorry," Cameron offered ineffectively.

"Let's just get moving," Casey muttered darkly, pulling his shirt on over his wet arms and shoulders, struggling as it stuck to his wet skin.

A sound like a dog with long nails walking across a wooden floor sounded, and Cameron looked around.

_That's odd,_ he thought. _What was that sound?-_

He would have continued to wonder at the sound and search for its source, but his thoughts stopped suddenly as he was engulfed in green light. A shock shot through his body, like touching an electrified fence, leaving him with a prickling heat travelling through his body, combined with a deathly chill at the same time. As this horrid sensation traversed every extremity, muscle, tendon - every molecule - of his body, his vision failed him, and he fell into darkness.

-

"Guys, come check this out!" Rainey called from a room down the corridor. He'd run that way with little Kokomon following him, had scampered down a small, red-velvet-carpeted staircase, and disappeared into a room just beyond the sight of Blake, Adam, Gizamon, and Kunemon.

"What is it?" Blake asked, noticing the joyful excitement found in his voice. He and the others began moving in Rainey's direction.

"It's awesome!" Rainey laughed.

As the room in which Rainey was now standing came into Blake's view, he caught sight of the most tremendous thing.

Inside of the room was an incredibly long table, stretching far from one end of the room to the other. The table held a dainty white table cloth, upon which sat the most stupendous feast the children had ever seen. Really, it could have been three feasts, and that was only if said feasts were incredibly large.

"Lookit!" Rainey called ecstatically. "Lookit all this food!"

"Amazing!" Adam drooled.

"Remember, you guys," Blake said, a sly smile on his face, "the last time we found a nice place with a huge feast inside, it was all a mirage."

"Come on, Blake," Gizamon said, laughing good-naturedly, but uneasily, "we don't need to be reminded of that."

"Aw, I was just joking," Blake replied playfully. "I don't think this is the same thing. After all, Etemon is strong, but he doesn't have weird powers like Devimon."

"Yeah, he's just way stronger," Adam said, a tinge of bitterness to his voice.

"But he's not here now, is he?" Blake continued, looking around for effect. "See, no Etemon. Guess that means we'll just have to enjoy this totally real feast right away!"

"I'm in!" Rainey and Kokomon cried excitedly.

"Yeah, definitely," Adam smiled. "But what about the others?"

Blake thought for a moment, then waved his hand dismissively. "They'll find us at some point. Besides, even if they don't, we're going to meet up later, and you have the bag, so we can just take some of this food with us."

"What's left, at least!" Rainey laughed.

"What are we waiting for?" Kunemon cried, after eyeing the food in near disbelief for the entirety of the conversation.

Adam chuckled. "Yeah, we should remember not to keep you Digimon away from food for too long."

"That's right," Kunemon replied stuffily.

"Yeah, there's nothing left to discuss, is there?" Blake asked, making sure everyone seemed content before checking the spread, eyeing a chicken leg with great intensity. "Dig in!"

The boys and their Digimon began a huge feeding frenzy.

-

"Becca!" Meggy cried frantically, rushing to the closed bathroom door and wrestling with the doorknob. The door was locked.

Of course.

Meggy slammed her fists against the door. "Becca, listen to me!"

"La la la, taking a shower," Becca chanted airily in sing-song.

"She's ignoring me," Meggy said incredulously, staring at Rabbitmon in disbelief.

"You have to do _something_," Rabbitmon urged.

"I'm trying," Meggy replied desperately. She resumed her insistent knocking. "Becca, this isn't funny! Listen to me!"

"Meggy, I've been in here for like a minute," Becca replied sternly. "If you wanted to take a shower so badly, you should have said so earlier, because I'm taking my time and you're just going to have to wait."

Meggy couldn't contain her angry desperation any more. "Becca, stop being such an idiot and get your mind off of something besides yourself and your stupid showers!"

A long silence ensued, with the sound of the shower water the only respite. Meggy's anger tapered and dissolved, leaving her feeling weak and full of remorse at her angry words; she couldn't apologise, though. She just couldn't bring herself to.

"Meggy," Rabbitmon said, with care but urgency in her voice.

"I know," Meggy replied, "but we have to give it a minute. What I said to her was . . . was out of line."

The shower turned off, and the silence deepened.

"Meggy, we can't just sit here and wait!" Rabbitmon persisted worriedly.

"Just a little more."

Rabbitmon looked round anxiously, rubbing her front paws together in nervous anticipation.

It was nearly another minute before the door opened, slowly. Becca was standing there, with a towel wrapped around her. Steam billowed from the room and her hair was wet and sticking to her skin. Otamamon sat behind her, looking like she didn't know what to do with herself.

Becca's eyes were red. She'd been crying.

Meggy waited for Becca to speak. They stared at each other for a moment, and Meggy felt the pain in her friend's eyes. She shouldn't have been so harsh.

Finally, Becca spoke. "What is it?" Her voice was monotone and detached, and she did not make eye contact with Meggy when she said this.

Meggy couldn't bring herself to say it at first, but she knew that it had to be said. "I - I'm sorry, Becca. Sorry I said that."

Becca's eyes remained distant and unfocused, but she acknowledged Meggy with an imperceptible nod.

Meggy waited a moment longer to see if Becca was going to say anything, but it soon became apparent that this was not going to happen. "Like I said," she continued, "I had no right to say that, but I was just trying to get you to listen to me. We've got to hurry!"

Becca came out of her stupor a bit at this, sensing the serious urgency in Meggy's voice.

"Becca, I heard something while you were in the shower," Meggy recounted. "I went to that balcony over there and looked over it and I saw Casey and Cameron and their Digimon. They were turned to stone!"

A moment - and then, "What?"  
"I know!" Meggy exclaimed. "I don't know what happened, but I think something did that to them. We have to go find the other guys and tell them what's happened and then find out a way to help!"

Becca's eyes finally looked back into Meggy's. "I'm - I'm sorry I didn't listen to you before. I shouldn't have been so self-centered."

"It's okay," Meggy sighed, waving her hand dismissively. "Now's not the time for that. We need to move!"

"Quickly!" Rabbitmon cried suddenly. "I hear something!"

Meggy whipped around, peering down the corridors and passageways. There was no movement in sight.

"Come on, we need to go this direction!" Rabbitmon called, leaping down a dimly-lit passage. Meggy, Becca, and Otamamon sprinted off after them.

They rounded a corner and descended a flight of velvet stairs, entering a massive room with an ornate chandellier hanging regally from the ceiling. A huge dining table stretched the length of the room, an impressive feat that only a table of such fine, heavy wood could accomplish. Expensive-looking chairs were placed carefully along the table.

At the far end were Blake, Gizamon, Rainey, Kokomon, Adam, and Kunemon. They were all cold, grey stone, frozen in a moment of shock and surprise.

"Oh my goodness!" Becca wailed upon seeing her friends in such a state.

"Come on!" Meggy cried, grabbing Becca's arm. "Whatever did this must be after us now! We're the only ones left! We have to keep moving until we can find some place safe to stop and figure things out!"

"Yeah, I can still hear something approaching," Rabbitmon added, her ears twitching periodically.

"I don't want to be turned to stone!" Becca shrieked, stomping her foot on the ground and screaming all-out.

Meggy, a pained look on her face, prodded, "That won't happen if you keep moving!"

"I'm scared!"

"Now's not the time to let that fear get to you," Meggy replied with forced patience. "We have to move!"

Becca tried to muster her courage, holding onto her trust in Meggy. "Okay . . . I'll try!"

"Just follow us!" Meggy directed, running after Rabbitmon. Becca and Otamamon followed very close behind.

They ran down corridor after corridor, turning in a maze-like sequence that made Becca despair should she have to find her way back. Otamamon did an impressive job keeping up with her little legs, and all four of them ran all-out to get away from the whatever-it-was that was after them.

Finally, as the whole lot of them were panting and beginning to think they'd run out of energy before they found a place to hide, they found themselves in a place they hadn't anticipated: A dead-end.

They were on the deck of the ship, high above the desert floor, and all there was was wooden deck and steel railing.

"We have to turn back!" Becca wailed. "We'll get caught out here!"

"For sure!" Otamamon yelped, picking up on Becca's anxiety more than suffering from her own.

"We can't turn back!" Rabbitmon snapped, halting Becca and Otamamon in their tracks. "It's already too close. We'll have to stand our ground here!"

The girls ran to the edge of the railing, as far away from the dark doorway through which they'd come as they could get, and fearfully awaited the emergence of their pursuer.

"Meggy, do you think we'll be okay?" Becca sobbed.

Meggy wasn't so sure, but she had to stay strong for her friend. "Of course. We'll make it."

A massive figure appeared in the doorway, and Becca gasped at the gleaming red eyes glaring at her.

"Wh - What is that?" Becca squealed breathlessly.

"I have no idea," Meggy said slowly, entranced by the ruby orbs watching evilly.

A cackle emanated from the darkened doorway, and out stepped a monstrous creature.

Truth to tell, if the girls hadn't been terrified and if the situation hadn't been tense, the creature may have almost appeared comical. Unfortunately, in this situation, close-up and menacingly unknown, it was nearly as frightening as SkullGreymon himself.

He was probably seven feet tall, maybe eight, it was hard to tell. He stood on huge, orange-skinned and scaly-looking talons, with four large claws on each and a fifth claw sticking backwards. He was covered in bright white feathers, all over the rest of his body. His arms were actually wings, ending in pointed purple feathers. He had a peacock-like semicircle of long, sharp feathers behind him, tipped with bright red pigment. His head was square, and below his gleaming red eyes was a crooked yellow beak with sharp teeth. Coming from the bottom of this beak was a plume of downy white feathers, sticking out from his chest. Sticking up above his head in a mohawk fashion were large black feathers, topping off his appearance.

In essence, he was a giant chicken.

Meggy was the only one who noticed the hilarity of this situation, and she covered her mouth, stifling a giggle.

"What are you doing?" Becca hissed, staring apprehensively at the Digimon, worried that Meggy had angered it.

"It - it's a chicken," Meggy said, grinning.

"This is no ordinary chicken!" Rabbitmon warned, her body tense and ready to fight at a moment's notice. "His name is Kokatorimon! He's an evil Digimon who uses his razor-edged feathers as a sword and who shoots his fiery gaze at opponents to freeze them in their tracks!"

"Wait," Becca muttered, "so you're saying _this _is the monster that turned our friends to stone?"

"Yeah," Otamamon interjected. "I've heard of him too. He's bad news."

"You'd better believe it, kiddies!" Kokatorimon cackled. His voice was grainy and abrasive, and his high-pitched drawl hurt Becca's ears.

"What did you do to our friends?" Meggy demanded.

"I just needed them to sit still until I could make sure I'd rounded up the lot of you!" Kokatorimon laughed menacingly. "You four are the last pieces in the DigiDestined collection. So sit still; it'll all be over soon!"

"No way I'm gonna let that happen!" Meggy replied bravely.

"Yeah!" Rabbitmon agreed. "There's no way I'll let you hurt my friends!"

"Too bad you don't have a choice!" Kokatorimon screeched. "Petra Fire!"

At this announcement, his red eyes glowed with flickering green light, which lanced forwards, lashing at Rabbitmon. Her powerful, muscular legs, specially sculpted to leap unbelievable heights, propelled her upwards and to Kokatorimon's left, and she landed safely a second later. Kokatorimon's attack blasted the boards where Rabbitmon had been standing, and in the crackling wake of the beam the boards hit directly had a spot on them of stone.

"That is how he did it!" Becca gasped.

"We aren't going to put up with this," Meggy muttered angrily, pulling her Digivice from her clothes and holding it in the air. "Rabbitmon, let's show him who's boss!"

"With pleasure," Rabbitmon grinned.

Brilliant light burst from Meggy's Digivice, enveloping the area.

"Rabbitmon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Lynxmon!"

The fiery cat Digimon stood before Kokatorimon, ready to attack. Kokatorimon was at first intimidated by this sudden change of pace, but he recovered his composure quickly.

"Nice little trick there," Kokatorimon grunted. "It won't be nearly enough to get you out of this situation." With that, he reached a feathered arm back, grasped the uppermost feather of his tail-feather plume, and yanked. He barely winced as the feather slid out, and he threw it into the air, catching it at the bottom, with the red pigment marking the top. He held it before him like a samurai warrior preparing for a swordfight.

"That's his Feather Sword," Otamamon commented tensely. "He may look silly, but he's a very skilled warrior who wields that sword masterfully. Lynxmon's got her work cut out for her."

"Otamamon, you could lend a hand," Meggy suggested anxiously.

"No!" Becca wailed, snatching Otamamon into her arms. "I don't want her to get hurt! I'd die if I saw my Otamamon turned to stone!"

"Fine," Meggy huffed. "Lynxmon and I will handle this ourselves."

"You're about to go down!" Kokatorimon gloated.

"I don't think so!" Lynxmon shot back. "Wild Nail Rush!" Lynxmon shot forward like a rocket, her large front claws blazing hot, ready to slash Kokatorimon. She shot past so quickly that it was hard for Meggy's human eyes to keep up with her, and as she passed Kokatorimon, her claws reached out, slashing across him with the sound of sharply clanging metal.

Lynxmon skidded to a halt, fishtailing around to face Kokatorimon.

"What happened?" Meggy asked, noting that Kokatorimon had barely registered the attack.

"He blocked me with his Feather Sword!" Lynxmon grunted.

"Don't worry," Meggy encouraged, "you can do it!" She continued to cheer on her Digimon partner, but deep down she was worried at how this silly-looking Digimon had so easily deflected her Digimon's lightning-fast strike.

"Thermal Mane!" Lynxmon announced strongly. A ball of white-hot flame circled in front of her mouth, generating from her body heat, and it shot forward, slamming into Kokatorimon and engulfing him in the blast. He roared indignantly as the heat seared his body, singing his feathers.

"Great job!" Meggy cried, leaping into the air. "You're awesome, Lynxmon! Let's show him that he has no right to try and hurt our friends!"

"Right!" Lynxmon roared. "Wild Nail Rush!"

She streaked past Kokatorimon, skidding to a halt after shooting past him. Wisps of flame still floated in the air around Kokatorimon, a reminder of the pain he'd felt moments before, and he now had three large red gashes on his abdomen. He was panting hard, wincing mildly from the searing sores.

"Lynxmon, great hit!" Meggy called. Lynxmon didn't move, nor did she reply. After a moment, Meggy continued. "Lynxmon? Lynxmon, are you okay?"

Lynxmon trembled - and fell.

"Lynxmon!" Meggy screamed. "Lynxmon, are you okay?"

Kokatorimon cackled evilly. He pulled his sword up; as Lynxmon had rocketed past, he brought his sword down. He took Lynxmon's attack in order to get in a hit of his own, placed strategically to stop Lynxmon in her tracks.

"Lynxmon, no!"

Lynxmon turned to face Kokatorimon, scowling angrily. She was breathing heavily, her side throbbing where she'd been struck.

"It's over now," Kokatorimon muttered finally, laughing with a slow, insidious drawl. He stepped forward, his eyes burning green. "Petra Fire!"

Meggy screamed in horror as Lynxmon was engulfed in Kokatorimon's attack. In only a moment, her partner was nothing more than a gaping stone statue, staring in angered pain at Kokatorimon with cold stone eyes.

"Lynxmon!" Meggy sobbed, her knees buckling. She fell to the hard wooden boards, tears streaming freely from her eyes. "No! What did you do to her?"

"Don't worry, little girl," Kokatorimon rumbled, turning to face Meggy, Becca, and Otamamon. "You won't hurt for much longer. You're going to be joining all your little friends in just a moment."

Kokatorimon took a menacing step forward, and Becca stepped up to Meggy's side, her knees shaking uncertainly, with Otamamon held tightly in her trembling arms.

Meggy continued to sob for Lynxmon as Becca knelt beside her. Otamamon jumped from her arms and she placed a comforting hand on Meggy's shaking shoulder.

"Meggy," she said softly. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry for this whole thing. I feel responsible."

Meggy looked up into Becca's eyes, her own eyes watery from her sobs, with tears still tracing their way down her face. "What?"

"If I'd only listened to you, we could've fixed this sooner and things wouldn't have happened like this," Becca continued. "I really was being self-centered and you were totally right and I'm sorry."

"Becca -" Meggy began, but Becca cut her off.

"Meggy, I was even being selfish just now. I'm here with you, with my own Digimon, just like you, and I have the same responsibility to stand up against bad Digimon just like you do, and I just didn't do that. I'm acting stupid and I'm sorry, and it's time for me to make that right." Becca rose steadily to her feet, glaring at Kokatorimon. "You're such a jerk for chasing us around like this! I hate stupid mean Digimon like you that only care about yourselves. I'm not going to let you hurt us and I'm gonna make you pay for hurting my friends!"

"I'm ready to go!" Otamamon called.

"Right!" Becca smiled, holding her Digivice up. "Get him, Otamamon!"

"Otamamon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Tortomon!"

The large, golden-scaled tortoise Digimon reared up before Kokatorimon, her spiked shell towering above him. Her bulk and spiked, dangerous-looking prescence was much more intimidating for Kokatorimon than Lynxmon's small, sleek form had been, and he took an involuntary step backwards.

"Y - you don't look so tough," Kokatorimon murmured uncertainly, trying to convince himself more than trying to intimidate Tortomon.

Tortomon laughed lightly, egging Kokatorimon on. "Come on, Kokatorimon. Just see if you can handle me."

Kokatorimon's eyes narrowed. "Of course I can!" He let out a screech and leapt high into the air. Admittedly, it was an impressive look for a Digimon like him, but Tortomon had been ready for something of this nature, and the spikes on her shell began to emit bright golden light.

Kokatorimon fell through the air, his sword held high, a bladed missle intent on destroying Tortomon with a devastating blow. "Feather Sword!" he screamed maniacally as the wind whipped past him.

Tortomon was ready with a retort. "Strong Carapace!" From the golden light, a barrage of massive spikes shot outwards from Tortomon's shell, heading straight for Kokatorimon, each one making a loud concussive noise as it left Tortomon's shell.

Kokatorimon fell past the first few spikes that roared past, but it was only a moment before Kokatorimon was lost in the explosions of spike after spike slamming into him. The concussive force contained in each blast halted Kokatorimon's downward momentum, knocking him back and flying in the opposite direction. Kokatorimon screamed in disbelief as he flew backwards, and as he fell beyond Tortomon's attack range, he dropped, falling into the large smoke-stack of the cruise ship. As he hit, smoke billowed out, and Kokatorimon appeared briefly, his feathers aflame. In only moments, however, his fiery form disappeared from view, never to be seen again.

There was an electric crackling sound, and Lynxmon's stone form burst into her natural flames.

"Lynxmon!" Meggy screamed gleefully, running forward and latching onto Lynxmon's neck.

"Meggy!" Lynxmon purred. "Thank goodness you were able to defeat Kokatorimon!"

"Yeah," Meggy wept, snuggling her face into Lynxmon's fiery mane. The flames were warm and soothing to Meggy, cheering her up instantly.

"So, if you've been turned back to normal, that must mean that everyone else is okay now, too!" Becca exclaimed happily.

"Guess so!" Meggy smiled, turning to beam at Becca.

"Well come on, then!" Becca laughed. "Let's go get everyone together!"

Tortomon and Lynxmon both glowed with golden light, shrinking back to their original forms.

"Come on, you guys," Becca reiterated.

"Wait," Meggy called. She paused, working herself up to saying what she knew needed to be said. "Becca . . . I'm sorry for everything that I said earlier. You were really impressive just now, and you kinda surprised me. I'm impressed, and I think that you ought to know."

Becca smiled. "Don't mention it. I just realized what was more important."

-

"I am so sick of this hot desert," Adam muttered unhappily.

They were trudging along in the desert again, just like they had been before the entire incident on the cruise liner. Once Kokatorimon had been defeated, they were all turned back to normal, and it was needless to say that all of them were more than ready to get off of the ship. The desert, however, was just as hot as ever, and just as dry as ever, and just as flat as ever, and just as boring as ever.

"A change of pace would be nice," Casey admitted.

"Come on, guys! Look alive!" Becca called from the head of the group. She'd been leading the way since they left the cruise liner behind, and she was the only one in the group who was tromping along with a smile on her face. Meggy was fairly happy, but Becca was outright giddy.

"How can you be so energetic in this desert?" Blake asked dryly. "I mean, I'm usually in a pretty good mood, but even I can't take this."

"Come on, it's a wonderful day!" Becca laughed, lengthening her stride a bit.

Blake sighed exasperatedly, along with many of the others.

"Wait, you guys!" Becca cried suddenly. "Look at that!"

The rest of the DigiDestined followed her direction and saw, to their surprise, a giant cactus.

"No way," Blake muttered derisively.

"I can't believe it either," Becca chuckled, "but there it is! Last one there is a rotten egg!" Becca began to run off, but very quickly realized that she was the only one. She turned back to the others. "What's the problem, you guys?"

"Do you remember the last time this happened?" Cameron began slowly, as though talking to an infant. "That didn't work out very well. Do you really want to go on a wild goose chase like that again?"  
Becca stomped her foot, scowling disdainfully at them. She thought for a moment, and finally said, "Well . . . is there anything else that you know of that's _better _to do?"

They sighed resignedly and trudged along behind her as she stubbornly proceeded.

It took a few minutes of passionless walking from the DigiDestined to arrive at the base of the cactus.

"Well," Cameron said, "I stand corrected."

For this time, the cactus had not disappeared as they approached it. It stood, towering above them, vibrantly green with dark green spines sticking out along it. There was a beautiful pink flower sitting at the very top of the cactus, and it seemed to shimmer and shine in the sunlight that played off of its delicate form.

"Wow!" Becca exclaimed. "It's _beautiful!_"

"It is!" Otamamon agreed, and the rest of the DigiDestined also muttered their approval.

Becca continued to stare at the pink flower, and it slowly opened its petals to reveal a gleaming green light.

"Whoa!" Becca gasped. She had thought that the flower atop the cactus was beautiful before, but now, as she was washed in brilliant, shimmering green light, she felt she'd never seen anything so beautiful.

Suddenly, to her pleasant surprise, her Tag lifted up, and the glowing green light descended to meet her. As it neared her, the lights dimmed, concentrated on the small square floating before Becca. It slid its way to a snug fit in her Tag, and her Crest locked itself in place.

Becca picked up the Crest, looking at it with a smile etched on her face. The lime green Crest had slid itself perfectly into the Tag, displaying its teardrop design for all to see. Within the bottom, larger, circular part of the teardrop etched in darker green, there was a circle inside of a circle. The simple Crest design seemed to emenate beauty to Becca, and she turned it on its side to read the inscription: Crest of Sincerity.

"Awesome!" Becca smiled, wiping at her watering eyes and beaming at Otamamon.

"Becca," Otamamon said, "I'm so proud of you!"

"Thank you, Otamamon," Becca laughed lightly. She thought about the meaning of her Crest. "I'm going to have to try extra hard to stay true to this Crest. It's the Crest of Sincerity, and I'm going to have to work at it, but I think that, with some practice, I'll be able to be worthy of carrying it."

Meggy stepped up to Becca's side, touching her shoulder affectionately. "Don't worry, Becca: You'll be awesome."

"Thank you Meggy," Becca sighed, thankful that she had such a great friend with her. "Thank you so much."

Becca turned to face the others, brandishing her new Crest proudly. They all congratulated her, excited that they'd found yet another Crest and were one step closer to finding all seven. Now, only Meggy and Rainey were left in the quest for finding every Crest.

Soon, hopefully, the DigiDestined would be ready to make the journey home.

Soon . . .

-

Another Crest has been found, bringing the DigiDestined one step closer to their goal. However, Etemon is still searching tirelessly for them, and darkness looms on the horizon for the DigiDestined. Will they be able to find the Crests and make it home, or will Etemon triumph once and for all? Find out, in the next Digimon: Digital Monsters!

-

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A/N: I must apologize for the long wait. I just couldn't feel this chapter. If it seems rushed or below par of other recent chapters, the reason is that I just wasn't able to get into this one. It'll be better for the next one, don't worry.

A/N: Don't forget to put in your votes for favorites, bests, and worsts, and we'll have ourselves a little "awards show." Happy reading! And thanks for all the reviews!


	20. The Prisoner

A/N: Thank you to Lady Dragoness and Alforce Zero for their reviews!

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A/N: Don't forget to give me your votes for all your favorites and least favorites pertaining to this story. Even if you don't usually review, let me know who you think should get the award.

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A/N: This chapter is being posted to top off your holiday weekend! Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving! EDIT: I tried to post this on Saturday for you to enjoy, but fanfiction refused me until today. Better late than never! Enjoy! 11/28/06

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A/N: A special thanks to my friend, Holly, for supporting me so much!

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A/N: This chapter holds the record for longest chapter: 25 pages!

-

**Previously in Digimon: Digital Monsters**

This is Becca speaking. We were walking through the desert when, all of a sudden, I spotted a cactus far off. We ran to it to get some shade from the hot day, but it turned out to be a mirage. However, there was something even better beyond: A cruise liner! We all boarded and split up into different groups, and I found a little patch of heaven: A shower! Oh, it was so wonderful! Too bad it was spoiled when Kokatorimon started attacking our friends. Meggy and I had to work through an argument, but we were able to pull together and Tortomon sent Kokatorimon on a run for his money. Everything was going so well that I didn't think it could get any better, but then we found a real cactus - and I got my Crest of Sincerity!

-

**CHAPTER TWENTY**

**The Prisoner**

Crest after Crest was being discovered, so it was a pleasant surprise when Rainey's Tag began to glow.

Casey beamed. "Hey, squirt, looks like you're finally gonna make something of yourself."

Rainey laughed lightheartedly. "Hey, cut it out!"

"This is awesome!" Casey continued. "This means we can find your Crest and then all we have left is Meggy."

"Does this mean we'll be heading home soon?" Becca inquired.

"Seems like," Casey smiled. "It's about time."

"You can say that again!" Becca exhaled. "I am _so done _with this desert."

"Me too," Otamamon agreed.

"Well then, let's find this Crest now!" Becca cried.

"Alright," Rainey agreed. "I can't wait to see what power I get. Maybe it'll be the Crest of Awesomeness . . . or the Crest of Coolness . . . or how about the Crest of Being the Best!" Rainey continued projecting what he figured his Crest _had _to be as they followed his Tag's pull.

The group approached a large canyon, with high stone walls all around. They walked through the narrow pathway, Rainey at the head, following his Tag. It took only a minute of walking for the narrow pass to open up around them, and they found themselves in quite a large space, surrounded by the canyon walls. Before them, on the wall of the canyon, was a rectangular design, within which was an etching that appeared to have the semblance of a Crest.

"Awesome!" Rainey exclaimed as his Tag pulled anxiously toward the design.

"Go ahead," Casey encouraged. "Get your Crest!"

"Come on Kokomon!" Rainey called, running excitedly towards the sketch in the wall. They stopped when they stood before it and, sure enough, the rectangle shone in brilliant golden light and shrank to a small, rectangular size the children had come to associate with Crests. The Crest slid itself into Rainey's Tag as the other DigiDestined crowded round him to see.

It was a beautiful yellow color. There was a circle at the top of the design, around the top half of which five small triangles were arrayed in a sunburst pattern. From the bottom half came a design like a pedestal for the circle, the bottom of which had a zig-zag pattern. It looked kind of like a ribbon. Rainey turned it on its side, and read "The Crest of Hope."

"The Crest of Hope," Rainey repeated aloud. "That's pretty cool."

"Very cool," Casey said proudly.

"Hey, look at this," Cameron said, getting everyone's attention.

"What is it?" Adam asked.

"Look!" Cameron pointed to where Rainey's Crest had been, and the children saw that it had revealed a passageway.

"Whoa, cool," Blake gaped. "Should we . . . do you think we should follow that passage?"

"I say it's better than walking through the desert," Becca asserted. "_Anything's _better than walking through this desert, actually!"

"Well, I'd rather not fight Kokatorimon again, but almost anything," Otamamon added.

"Well, yeah," Becca laughed in agreement.

"But seriously, guys," Blake asked.

"I think it's worth it to explore the inside," Cameron said. "After all, we only have to find Meggy's Crest now, and since her Tag isn't glowing yet we just have to keep moving until it does. Might as well keep moving through this tunnel, we have as much reason to believe the Crest may be through here as we do to believe it's somewhere in the desert."

"I guess we'll go through here, then," Blake stated, and they slowly climbed into the entrance of the passage.

The interior of the passageway was cold, damp, and dark; a welcome change to the DigiDestined. Though it was dank and eerie, the DigiDestined were ready for some kind - _any kind _- of change in scenery. The DigiDestined would have been a bit uneasy about the unwelcoming surroundings, but they weren't in the mood, and Cameron was certainly enjoying himself.

"Would you _look at this!_" Cameron exclaimed, running his hands along the wall.

The wall - actually, all the walls - were covered in strange writing that looked like something out of The Matrix. Strange symbols from an ancient, long-forgotten author painted the walls in a light blue message.

"Somebody sure had a lot to write," Meggy muttered. "Too bad we can't read it."

Cameron shook his head gruffly, continuing down the passage, his hand travelling along the walls the whole time. "No, Meggy, you misunderstand." He sounded a bit exhasperated, but truly he was excited, and ready to dispense knowledge. "This is a kind of digital code."

"How do you know this, exactly?" Blake wondered casually.

Cameron's excitement continued to build as he continued down the passage.

"You remember that structure that we fought Andromon in?"

"Yeah," Casey said, recalling uneasily how strong Andromon had been. Of course, he hadn't really turned out to be a threat, and the DigiDestined were much stronger now than they had been back then, but it was still a tense situation and Casey didn't like to reflect on those troublesome times.

"Way back on File Island?" Blake added, his curiosity pricked now.

"Yeah," Cameron replied, almost absentmindedly. "Well, remember, I split up from you guys. I went exploring and found runes just like these. There weren't this many, but it's the same kind of thing."

Blake rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "So . . . what's the connection?"

"Well, there isn't much of one, on the surface," Cameron explained. "Think about it: File Island is this little island out in the middle of the ocean, predominantly semi-tropical forests and surrounded by a beach, with islands all around it, each with its own unique climate."

The DigiDestined nodded, though Cameron wasn't looking.

"Server is a continent, not an island, and what we've traversed has been almost exclusively desert, with the exception of the forested Koromon village we encountered upon our arrival."

Rainey scowled at the memory of those little Pagumon inhabiting the village, who'd kidnapped poor Kokomon in the middle of the night, had trapped all the Koromon in cages, had sent Gazimon to hurt Gizamon, and had introduced Etemon to the children, nearly getting them all killed.

"Now, that's a pretty big difference," Cameron was saying. "But the connection is that both of them are digital, right? They're all in the Digital World, so, theoretically of course, they're connected because they're all a chunk of a larger data equation."

Blake's head was spinning from all this technical jargon, but Casey seemed to get it. "So . . . the gist of what you're saying is that the connection comes from them being in the same world?"

"Yeah."

"Well, that seems pretty basic," Blake huffed, a bit frustrated at being belittled by Cameron's vocabulary.

"No, no, no, you're missing the point. It's - aaah!"

"Whoa, are you okay?" Blake called out, running to Cameron's aid. As he had been walking along the wall, talking to the rest of the DigiDestined and intently studying the runes, he'd tripped over something on the ground.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Cameron muttered, helping himself up despite Blake's outstretched hand and dusting the dirt off his pants. "I just tripped over - hey! Look, how'd this get here?"

"Whoa!" Blake exclaimed, as Cameron held aloft the object he'd tripped over: A lap-top.

"This is inconceivable!" Cameron gasped.

"Yeah, it doesn't make sense, either!" Becca chimed in. Cameron shot her an exhasperated look, before returning his gaze to the lap top.

It was an older model, and the cover was yellow closest to where it opened, with a little half-sunburst at the top-middle of the coloring, and a yellow pineapple sitting above the yellow coloring, in the other half, which was white. The rest of the computer was white as well. Cameron opened it, searching only a moment for the power button. He clicked it, but nothing happened.

"Hmm . . ." Cameron pondered, hitting the button a few more times.

"Maybe you broke it in the fall," Blake snickered, and Gizamon chortled alongside him.

Cameron shook his head in dismay, turning the computer over in his arms. He checked the batteries, and saw that they were there. "The battery must've run down."

"Maybe whoever left it here left it on?" Blake suggested.

Cameron shook his head again. "I don't know. Who would just leave this here?"

"Is that a human object?" DemiDevimon inquired, voicing the questions of all the Digimon in the group.

"Yes," Cameron replied. "It's a computer that humans can take with them."  
"Well, remember, you're the first humans we've ever seen in the Digital World," Kunemon reminded them.

"Oh, yeah," Blake murmured.

"What's a computer, anyway?" Rabbitmon asked.

Cameron was caught off guard a bit by this inquiry, having assumed they'd already know. "Computers come in many different forms, but you don't really think about it a lot. Everything electronic is run by some sort of computer. They store data and run certain programs." Cameron paused. "Come to think of it, each of you Digimon must be some sort of computer."

"You - you think I'm a computer?" DemiDevimon stammered uncertainly.

"I don't _feel _like a computer," Rabbitmon replied.

"You don't look like one either," Meggy laughed.

"Or maybe the Digital World is the computer, and you're all the data and the program it runs," Cameron continued, oblivious to the Digimon's objections. This statement made the Digimon look even less pleased.

"Cameron, what are you even talking about?" Blake asked tiredly.

"Never mind," Cameron muttered. "I'm just snowballing a theory, here."

Blake looked a bit angry. "You didn't have to get the Digimon so worked up about it."

"Just never mind, okay?"

Cameron was on the ground, fiddling with the computer. He pulled a power chord ouy of the computer and clicked it into one of the runes. To the surprise of the entire party, it clicked right in and the computer screen lit up immediately.

"No way!" Adam breathed. "How did that work?"

"Honestly?" Cameron asked. "I don't know."

"Uh . . . okay," Adam said, not having expected that.

"What are you doing?" Blake asked.

"Can't you see I just got this thing to turn on?" Cameron replied, not looking up from the computer on which he was now typing furiously. "I'm working here, give me a minute."

Blake sighed. "What ever happened to finding the last Crest?"

"And going home?" Casey added.

"Just gimme a minute." Blake was convinced that as he said this, Cameron was confirming that he hadn't really heard anything they'd said.

The kids waited impatiently, when suddenly a large translucent white ball appeared, hovering only a yard or two down the passageway from them.

"What is that?" Blake asked.

"It's a visual representation," Cameron explained nonchalantly.

"Wait," Blake said, holding up his hand, "you're saying _you_ made that appear?"

"Yeah," Cameron said smoothly. "That's what I'm doing on the computer."

"Geez," Adam murmered, impressed at Cameron's skill.

"Now look at that," Cameron muttered, directing everyone's attention back to the globe hovering before them.

The DigiDestined gathered beside Cameron, staring at the big glowing globe. Suddenly, in a brighter white light, seven continents etched themselves onto the globe.

"It's earth!" Meggy gasped.

"What?" Rabbitmon inquired.

"It's home," Casey replied, awed.

"This is a layout of earth," Cameron explained. The continents disappeared, replaced by numerous bright white lines that traced themselves back and forth across the globe, making it look like a huge yarn ball.

"What are those?" Becca asked.

"These lines show major digital networking in our world," Cameron replied. "It's the connection from one computer to another computer. A stream of data, an information highway, what have you."

"Oh," Becca said quietly, feeling a bit lost.

"Okay, so that's how major bits of information passes on earth," Cameron continued. "Now, here . . . look at this." Another ball appeared beside the earth globe, but, though this one also had continents, they weren't any the kids had studied in their geography classes.

"What world is that?" Adam asked.

"That's the Digital World," Casey guessed.

"Correct," Cameron said. "See, that's the Digital World and all of its continents. Now look at this."

White lines crossed the Digital World as they had earth, replacing the continents, and the two globes moved to overlap each other.

"Look at that!" Meggy exclaimed. "The lines match!"

"Yep."

"But what does that mean?" Prairiemon asked.

"You see, the Digital World and earth have the same information pathways. They overlap perfectly."

"Like I said, what does that mean?" Prairiemon reiterated.

Cameron looked up. "This is only a theory, but check it out: The Digital World is just what it's name implies, a completely digital plane of existence. While this isn't really logically possible, we're here, so I don't guess logic has anything to do with it. Now, if this is a completely digital world, then what significance comes from the major information pathways crossing exactly with the pathways on earth?"

The question was met by an extended silence. Everyone was thinking hard, but quite honestly Cameron seemed to be the only one who really knew what was going on.

After an adequate amount of time allowed for his friends to think it through, Cameron answered his own question. "The information pathways on earth are an indication of digital pathways. That means that earth's digital pathways are the same as the Digital World's information pathways. The Digital World is a shadow world!"

Blake took in all this new information. "Hold on . . . so you're saying the Digital World is like a clone world of earth?"

"Not exactly," Cameron continued. "See, they aren't clones because if they were they'd have identical continents. Now, Server is similar in many ways to some areas on earth, as is File Island, but they're different in their own right, too, and not just because they have Digimon running around. However, as different as they are, the information pathways are the same. The Digital World, in essence, _shares _those pathways with earth."

"So . . . so they're connected?" Adam asked.

"Exactly!" Cameron nodded. "The Digital World is a shadow world to earth because the Digital World comes from earth, and it is like earth, and things on earth influence things in the Digital World."

Blake noted this piece of information with renewed curiosity. "Wait a minute. Before we were sucked into the Digital World, all kinds of crazy stuff was happening. And when we were transported, first there was a freak snowstorm. No warning or any way to realize that it was coming."

"That's right!" Cameron exclaimed.

"So, does that mean that things on earth not only influence things in the Digital World, but that things in the Digital World influence things on earth?"

"I'd say that's an astute observation," Cameron agreed. "So the two world are connected, and everything that happens in one has some kind of influence on the other."

"Wow," Becca gasped. "I had no idea!"

"But if they're connected, how come we've never heard of it before?" Casey asked.

"Good question," Cameron muttered, and he typed away again. After a moment, he looked up. "I think it's because of the nature of the Digital World."

"How's that?"

"I'll tell you. The Digital World is, basically, just one giant program."

"Huh?" Casey wondered, and the rest of the group shared a similar reaction.

"Listen, I already said it once: The Digital World is a digital world. It's gotta be made completely of data. So of course, in our digital society, something like this was bound to happen: A shadow world created by data. But something like this wouldn't be secure. I guess the Digital World has a companion program that protects it from being detected."

"This is all pretty far-fetched, isn't it?" Blake asked.

"It would be if we weren't standing in the middle of a cave with all of these runes in it, wouldn't it?" Cameron shot back rhetorically.

Blake was a bit confused by this, but recovered quickly. "What do these heiroglyphs have to do with it?"

"These are no heiroglyphs," Cameron answered. "See, heiroglyphs are ancient writings, usually done by ancient civilizations long-past. They tell storys, chronicle history, and stuff like that. This does all of that stuff, but only for computer nerds."

"You lost me again," Blake admitted sheepishly.

"These writings are all computer code," Cameron revealed. "It's no code like anything I've ever seen before, but that's the only logical thing it could be. I found it on File Island, now we're finding it here. Why is this tunnel here? It's square-shaped. That's not normal. Why was it in the complex with Andromon? You guys told me about the conveyor belts that didn't do anything. But Andromon was there, and he was a _guard_. He was strong, and he was programmable, and he was meant to protect that facility that had no purpose. This tunnel here was hidden behind Rainey's Crest, which I would daresay is no easy barrier to pass. I'd say there are other tunnels and facilities like this scattered around the Digital World. They seem to have no purpose, but they're heavily guarded and inside of them is a part of the code."

"So this code has secret locations throughout the Digital World where it can be found?" Meggy asked.

"I can't prove it, but I wouldn't be surprised," Cameron replied. "See, this code right here is special. What we're looking at here is the code that makes up the very fabric of this Digital World!"

Silence fell. "Are you serious?" Casey asked.

"Yep," Cameron smiled. "This code before us is a part of the makeup of the Digital World. I think it contributes largely to the very existence of Server."

"This doesn't make any sense," Becca murmered, sitting down quickly.

"Wait a minute," Casey said, "if this whole place is nothing but data, how did we get here?"

"This is a theory I've had for a little while now," Cameron expounded. "I think we're still at camp."

Again . . . silence.

Finally: "What?" Blake was more confused than ever.

"Listen. I think we're back at camp. The real us are back at camp, while the group of us right here are just digital representations. I'm not exactly sure how we got here, but I think that's how it works."

Blake shook his head in confusion, trying to put everything in place. "So . . . this place is all written in code?"

"Right."

"And this whole DigiWorld, the whole thing is just a big computer program, like a video game?"

"Correct."

"And everything, even us and our Digimon, we're all just data?"

"You got it."

"But that's okay because the real us are on earth, and that's how it works."

"That just about sums it up."

"Wow," Blake sighed. "That's a lot to take in."

"If we weren't living in the middle of it, it would be totally implausible," Cameron summerized.

"And also not believable," Becca added, recieving another hopeless look from Cameron.

Suddenly, there was a loud, insistent beeping noise. A small orange envelope icon appeared in the bottom left corner of the computer screen.

"What's that?" DemiDevimon asked.

"Uh . . . I have mail," Cameron said uncertainly.

"Are you serious?" Meggy asked incredulously.

"Yeah, I don't believe it either," Cameron muttered. He clicked on the icon.

There was a loud static sound that filled the air, which slowly faded out. As the fuzzy background noise died away, the sound of a tinny, electronic voice could be heard.

"Hello? Hello? Can you hear me? Hello? Can anyone hear me?"

"Who is that?" Casey asked.

"I don't know," Cameron asked. Cameron strained his ears to hear the strange voice over the fluctuating static.

"Hello? My name i . . . tamon. I have been imprison . . . ramid. Please . . . one out there . . . can hear this . . . cue me!"

Static buzzed for a few more seconds before ending abruptly.

"What was that about?" Gizamon asked.

"Gimme a second," Cameron muttered, typing furiously.

"What did that say?" Rainey wondered.

"There was something about being imprisoned," Meggy said.

"Hold on, I've almost got it," Cameron said.

In a few moments, Cameron restarted the message, and the static had been cleaned up on this go around.

"Hello? Hello? Can you hear me? Hello? Can anyone hear me? Hello? My name is Datamon. I have been imprisoned inside of a pyramid. Please, someone out there: If you can hear this, rescue me!"

"Well that's interesting," Cameron said simply.

"What do we do?" Becca asked.

"Well, he sounds like he needs help," Blake replied. "I guess we should go help him."

"Sounds simple enough," Casey voiced sarcastically. "Too bad we don't know of any local pyramids."

"No problem," Cameron countered. "I've already begun running a search."

"I don't know about you, but I'm tired of walking," Becca grumbled.

"And I'm sleepy!" Rainey complained.

"I think if someone needs our help we should give it to them," Adam stated.

"I agree, but what if it's a trap?" Casey retorted.

"You can't say we haven't taken risks before," Meggy said casually.

"That doesn't mean we should keep pushing our luck," Casey objected.

"Chill out you guys!" Cameron called. "Look, I input the address into my computer and uploaded it onto the map of the Digital World. Check it out: That blue dot is us, and the red dot is him."

Said two dots appeared on the large sphere, blinking off and on insistently. "This shows," Cameron explained, "that we're less than half a day's journey from wherever this guy is being held."

"Then let's get going," Blake said.

"Hold on!" Casey objected. "Did you hear a word that came out of my mouth? This could be a trap! It could be dangerous!"

"Dude, we have to at least check it out," Blake replied calmly. "If it looks like bad news once we get there, we won't touch it. But we have to try. We have to see."

Casey shook his head, exhaling heavily. "Fine. Just _be careful!_"

Blake returned a wry smile. "Come on . . . of course I'm careful!"  
-

"Lord Etemon, sir!" Gazimon gasped, running into his trailer, a look of desperation painted on his face.

Etemon looked up quickly, startled from his half-sleep. His anger flared instantly, never being fond of being interrupted.

"This had _better _be important!" Etemon growled darkly. He wasn't much for mornings - even if it was early afternoon. He was drowsy anyway!

"It is, Lord Etemon, sir!" Gazimon panted. "I promise! I wouldn't have interrupted your slumber with anything less than pressing news!"

"_What is it?_" Etemon rumbled deeply.

"It's Datamon, sir!" Gazimon explained.

"Oh, _him _again, eh?" Etemon drawled, relaxing slightly. "What is it this time? And how is this so important?"

"Well, we tracked a transmission leaving the pyramid," Gazimon explained.

Etemon sat for a moment, processing this information. "Well . . . wait, why is this so important? We've had Datamon locked up for quite some time now, and he's never caused any significant problems."

"This is different!" Gazimon exclaimed. "This is the first time he's sent a message out!"

"What are you getting at?" Etemon muttered, his drowziness returning slowly but surely.

"He's never done this before!" Gazimon cried. "This time, instead of just messing around and glitching the Dark Network, he's really messed things up! He's sent out a message that someone else has recieved?"

"Wait," Etemon grumbled. "Are you saying that Datamon's trying to get someone to help him escape?"

"That's what we're afraid of," Gazimon replied ominously.

"What?" Etemon roared, suddenly furious.

"He might be trying to escape," Gazimon repeated.

"This _can not _happen!" Etemon raged, standing abruptly. He opened up the door to his trailer, peering out into the harsh desert sunlight. "Monochromon! Saddle up! We need to get to the pyramid immediately!"

There was a roar of acknowledgement from the head of the trailer, and Etemon slammed the door behind him.

"L-Lord Etemon," Gazimon stammered. "Don't you want me to get out first."

"Shut up and sit down!" Etemon ordered.

Gazimon did as he was told, immediately. He knew that Etemon was nearly madder than he had ever been, and this was no time to cross him - for any reason.

-

"I didn't expect it to be like this," Blake shrugged.

They were standing at the foot of a large sphinx, looking at the pyramid mentioned in the broadcast. It was off in the distance, though it would only be a few minutes' walk. The interesting thing about the pyramid, though, was that it was upside down.

"How is that possible?" Casey asked, amazed.

"I . . . haven't quite figured that out yet," Cameron admitted.

The pyramid looked like any of the pyramids from the ancient Egyptian society, like the typical pictures that are always shown in classrooms throughout the world, but instead of sitting right-side up, the pointed tip of the pyramid was unseen in the sand, and the large should-be base of the pyramid stuck high up into the air.

"This is amazing," Meggy breathed, staring intently at the spectacle.

"And entirely impossible," Cameron whispered, silently noting this as another example of how the Digital World was not a natural plane of existence.

"So, this is where that guy is supposed to be captured?" Becca asked.

"Datamon," Cameron nodded.

"I'm still not sure about this," Casey reiterated darkly.

"Look, if someone needs our help, we've got to try and lend a hand," Blake explained. He and Casey had been over this argument no less than ten times already.

"I agree," Adam piped up.

"And I will follow my partner into thick or thin!" Kunemon iterated valiantly.

"I'm not so sure," Becca muttered unsteadily. "That pyramid looks like it could fall over at any minute!"

"Actually, this Datamon guy has been trapped there for some time," Cameron noted. "If that pyramid were going to fall, it would've done so by now."

"Still."

"I don't want to go if Casey says I shouldn't," Rainey said quietly.

"Come on, you guys," Blake sighed. "We've gotta figure something out, here."

"I'm sticking to my position," Casey stated adamantly. "I say we shouldn't do this. It's too dangerous, too much of a risk, with too many unknowns. Somebody could get hurt."

"Unclench your bowels for a moment," Blake replied, a wry smile on his face. "If you don't want to go in, you can hang out here. Okay?"

Casey scowled. "I still don't like this idea, but if it's the only compromise we reach, I'll agree to it."

"Okay, that's settled," Blake continued. "Now, I'm going in. The only other one of us who needs to go in is Cameron, because he's the only one who can find this Datamon guy."

Cameron nodded, a look of determination on his face.

"Adam, you've been pretty gung-ho today," Blake commented. "Are you going in?"

Adam nodded.

"I'm coming, too," Meggy interjected.

"You sure?" Blake asked. "The three of us should be enough to help this guy out. Don't feel bad if you want to hang out here."

"No," Meggy shook her head. "No, I want to come. I can help out. Besides, if worse comes to worse, Lynxmon could provide a good backup."

"That's true," Cameron agreed.

"Well I'm not very big on the idea of going in there," Becca piped up. "I think I'm content to stay right here."

Blake nodded. "Right. And Casey, I know you're staying, and Rainey will stay with you."

Rainey looked a bit downcast that he wasn't going to end up getting to explore the pyramid, but, as he'd said earlier, he'd much rather stay with his big brother.

"Alright, looks like it's the four of us," Blake concluded, looking around at Cameron, Adam, and Meggy. "Our Digimon should be able to handle any surprises, and we'll take this one really carefully," he said this with a nod toward Casey. He turned to address Casey now. "Just in case, I want you guys keeping a watch from out here. If it looks like we might be in over our heads, lend a hand."

"Already planning on it," Casey nodded. He pointed up to the sphinx, noting that said sphinx's mouth was a large opening that lead to a cavernous room. "We'll stay there. It should keep us safe and out of sight, and we'll have a clear view of the pyramid."

"Excellent," Blake smiled. He extended a hand to Casey. "I know we don't always get along, but I'm glad I can trust you to watch our backs."

Casey smiled as well, taking Blake's outstretched hand. "You can count on it."

"We'll be careful," Blake waved, and the group of eight headed out for the pyramid.

Moving slowly, carefully, laboriously across the hot desert sand, the eight comprising the rescue team slinked forth, closing the gap between them and the pyramid. Blake shot another glance about to check their surroundings before they put their backs against the pyramid.

"Alright, where do we go from here?" Blake asked Cameron.

Cameron pulled out the computer and pulled it open. A few moments of quick typing and a map interface appeared on the screen.

"This is gonna be complicated," Cameron breathed, "but getting in will be easy, and we can take the rest as it comes."

"Yep," DemiDevimon agreed.

"Okay," Cameron muttered, tracing his finger along the computer screen for a moment. "Just around this corner here, there should be a doorway."

Blake led the group around the corner; the sphinx from which Casey watched protectively was now blocked from view.

"Doorway?" Blake asked. "Didn't you say there would be a doorway here?"

Cameron stared, dumbfoundedly. They faced a blank wall, with stones just as solid as they had been round the corner. "Yes. There is. Well, there's supposed to be."

"And that map is up-to-date?" Meggy asked.

"Of course," Cameron replied, a bit defensively.

"Can you check to make sure?" Blake suggested.

Cameron sighed with a tinge of aggrivation; the map was up to date, he didn't need to check it! However, if simply to appease the others, he decided to look. He typed away quickly, checking everything. "Yep, it's up-to-date. Sure thing."

"Then how do we explain this?" Blake asked, motioning to the blank wall and unententionally sounding rude.

Cameron moved forward, staring curiously at the wall before him. He typed on the computer another moment, bringing up a larger view of the schematic for the section of wall he now faced. "This doesn't make any sense." Shaking his head in dismay, he took another step forward, reaching out with his hand. "According to my schematics, the entryway should be right here." His hand touched the wall - and disappeared.

"Whoa!" Adam exclaimed.

"Incredible!" Cameron chortled, pulling his hand back into view. "Completely unbelievable!"

"What exactly is happening here?" Blake asked.

"I think," Cameron surmised, "that this 'solid' wall is actuall a hologram, to deter anyone from entering the pyramid. The doorway is here, but the hologram was concealing it from our view."

"Amazing!" DemiDevimon breathed.

"So . . . we just walk through here?" Blake asked and, without waiting for a reply, stepped forward. He disappeared beyond the wall, melting into it and vanishing from view.

"No way!" Adam gasped.

"Come on you guys!" Blake called from beyond view. "Just step through, no problem."

"Here we go, then," Meggy said, and she, Rabbitmon, and Gizamon stepped through the doorway.

Blake watched patiently until Cameron came through at last, with DemiDevimon on his favorite perch atop Cameron's shoulder.

They found themselves in a wide, tall hallway that extended for a ways before going to the left and right. This hallway was created using the same sand-colored bricks used to create the whole of the outside of the pyramid.

"Ready?" Blake inquired.

"Yep," Cameron replied, reenlarging the schematic on the computer screen. "I'm ready to proceed if you all are."

"We're ready," Meggy nodded.

"Okay then," Cameron said, again typing on the keyboard. "Let's see here . . . Now that we're in here, I think I'll be able to locate this prisoner, Datamon, and then we can find a direct path to him."

"Cool," Blake smiled.

"Just give me a second here to consolidate all of my information," Cameron muttered, typing away. "It shouldn't be too long."

"I don't guess we're in any hurry," Blake sighed, leaning against the wall.

After several moments, Cameron gasped. "This is inconceivable!"

"What?" Meggy asked. "What is it?"

"I can't believe it!" Cameron laughed. "This pyramid is actually two connected pyramids!"

A pause. "Are you serious?" Adam questioned.

"Very!" Cameron laughed in amazement. "Check it out!"

They all gathered round him, staring intently at the screen. "Whoa!" Meggy exclaimed. "That really _is _unbelievable."

Before them, on the computer in Cameron's hands, was an upside down gray triangle, depicting the pyramid in which they currently stood. Connected to the bottom point of the pyramid was the top point of another pyramid of the same size. It looked kind of like an hourglass.

"You see?" Cameron pointed. "This pyramid, the upside-down one that we saw from outside, is really only _half _of the structure! The rest of it is connected at the tip to the underground portion." With a beeping noise, a red dot began flashing on the screen near the bottom of the underground structure. "Hey! That's Datamon's location!"

"For real?" Blake exclaimed, pushing the others to the side so he could see better. "What, there at the bottom of the pyramid?"

"Aw, that's a long way," Gizamon complained, sitting back on his haunches.

Blake stood tall, flashing a winning smile at his partner. "It's no problem for us, buddy! We're an unstoppable team!"

Gizamon leapt happily in the air. "Yeah! You said it!"

"Wow, that was a quick change," Rabbitmon observed.

"How could I stay so gloomy when I have such a fantastic partner by my side?" Gizamon replied valiantly.

"That's right!" Blake smiled, flashing a thumbs-up. "We're the ultimate duo! Look out, Datamon, because Blake and Gizamon are gonna show up and save you before you can say 'pyramid!'"

"Well, it's good to see that you're enthusiastic," Cameron laughed. "Now, it's time to see what route we're going to take to get to Datamon."

-

Casey, leaning lazily against the sphinx's open mouth with his arms crossed, looked out over his shoulder across the desert. The wind had picked up, kicking sand into the air in an erratic journey across the desert.

"Storm's come up," Casey mumbled.

"What's that?" Becca called from inside the room housed within the sphinx's mouth. "Did you say something?" She was sitting Indian-style on the floor across from Rainey, who was seated likewise. Otamamon was to her left, Kokomon to the right. Becca was teaching Rainey some chant that went along with clapping and slapping thighs and clapping their hands with each others in order to keep the beat of the chant.

"It's nothing," Casey murmured. He returned to watching the desert. His exterior was calm, but inside his thoughts raced fretfully. _I know it really hasn't been long, but I have no way to keep in touch with them in there and I would really rather know exactly what's going on._

"Okay," Becca said from inside the cave, "I made this up about Digimon, and I don't know how great it is, so let me know, okay?"

"I'm sure it's awesome!" Rainey exclaimed.

"Yeah!" Kokomon agreed.

Casey sighed. He understood that they needed to entertain themselves, but didn't they care even a little bit about how their friends were doing inside the pyramid?

Casey turned his head to stare momentarily at the four seated within the structure. Prairiemon, standing in the corner nearby him, noticed the movement. He tilted his head in a silent inquiry.

"Prairiemon," Casey sighed quietly, "what's wrong with me?"

Prairiemon tilted his head further in confusion. "Casey . . . ?"

Casey smiled, a forlorn look. "Don't worry about it."

Prairiemon stared with grave concern at his partner. _What did he mean?_

Casey's gaze returned to the tumultuous desert. The sand was still being kicked up into the air, but it didn't seem like it was going to turn into a full-fledged storm. In fact, it was probably getting ready to die down again.

Quietly, to himself, Casey muttered, "What is that?" His eye had been caught by something kicking up dust along the desert. It was headed from afar in the direction of the pyramid.

After watching it for a few moments, he noted how swift it was approaching the area. "Hey, Prairiemon, come take a look at this."

The clawed Digimon sidled forward to stand beside Casey.

Outstretching his arm, Casey pointed to the far-off object. "See there?"

"Yeah," Prairiemon observed in a hushed tone. "What could it be?"

"I don't know, but it seems to be heading for the pyramid," Casey replied.

"And fast."

"That's for sure." Suddenly, Casey began to get an ominous feeling in the pit of his stomach. _It can't be . . ._

Prairiemon saw Casey, who had begun to tremble from his feelings of foreboding and was clenching his fists. "What do you think it is?" he asked tenatively.

"Not what," Casey muttered darkly. "Who."

Casey placed his hand on Prairiemon's head, guiding him back into the recesses of the sphinx. "Let's get in here for now."

Becca looked up, sensing Casey's mood. "Everything okay?"

"Let's just be quiet now," Casey said, crouching down with the others. They all stared at him inquisitively, but even Rainey stayed silent. Casey counted silently, internally. One. Two. Three . . .

When he'd reached 120, Casey arose and moved forward cautiously, putting his back to the wall and inching forward. Prairiemon followed at a respectable distance.

Casey peeked around the edge of the sphinx's mouth, barely revealing any part of himself to anyone who might have been watching. As slowly and meticulously as he could, he inched forward until he could see the pyramid.

"It's him!" Casey growled.

"Who?" Prairiemon questioned, his ears twitching inquisitively.

"_Etemon!_"

"What?" Becca called, still sitting within the sphinx.

"Keep it down!" Casey hissed. "Etemon is here!"

"_What?_"

"Etemon is here! I think he's going in the pyramid."  
Becca ran forward, but stopped when Casey motioned for her to do so. He shook his head before looking again at the trailer now sitting before the pyramid. He cringed as the orange-furred monkey Digimon emerged from within, flanked by several small rabbit Digimon - his Gazimon servants.

"He must have found out that we're here," Casey growled.

"Or maybe he's after Datamon," suggested Prairiemon.

"Datamon?" Becca asked. She'd sidled up beside the two of them, Otamamon right behind her.

Prairiemon nodded. "What if Datamon was imprisoned because of Etemon?"

Casey considered this for a moment. "That's possible. I guess we'll see."

"Wait," Becca gasped.

"What?"

"Look!" She pointed to Etemon's trailer. "Etemon's going inside!"

"What?" Casey cried. "No! Our friends are in there!"

"What should we do?" Otamamon asked worriedly.

Casey had promised Blake that he'd watch out for them, but he had no idea where they were or how they were doing. "We'll wait," Casey replied. "We'll give it several more minutes and then make our decision."

Becca nodded and returned with Otamamon to Rainey and Kokomon. Casey glared in the direction of Etemon's trailer, with the harnessed Monochromon standing lazily in front of it, awaiting Etemon's return. _I hope I've made the right choice._

-

"Okay," Cameron muttered. "There should be another concealed door here."

The group had actually successfully made it into the underground pyramid, and the decor had drastically changed. Now, rather than sand-colored bricks making up the walls, floors, and ceilings, it was steel paneling. It was all gray-colored and had a dull luster. The hallway size was nearly the same, but here and there it tapered, in some places only allowing enough width for them to proceed in a straight line. For now, they stood in a large hallway.

"Here?" Blake asked, pointing to a section of wall that held no distinguishing features from every other section of wall.

"Yeah," Cameron nodded.

"All right then!" Blake cried triumphantly, and he and Gizamon strode forward - straight into a solid wall.

"Ow!" they cried in unison.

"Oh!" Cameron laughed. "Sorry, it's a few steps to your right." He scratched his head in embarassment. "My mistake."

Gizamon and Blake turned, scowling. "You did that on purpose!" Blake accused.

"I didn't! Honestly!" Cameron waved his hand in surrender, still scratching his head.

"Whatever," Blake growled, stepping to his right. He walked through the wall, like he had so many other times today, to find himself in a nearly identical hallway. He was just about getting used to the whole walking-through-wall-holograms thing. "That's better," he whispered, taking in his new surroundings -

"Ah!" he cried, and leapt back through the wall as quickly as possible.

On the other side, Blake lay on the ground, patting his aching behind. He'd tripped over Gizamon, who'd been walking through the portal when Blake had rushed back through. "Ow, Gizamon, that -" Blake quickly clapped his hands across his face, silencing himself.

"Blake, what happ -" Cameron began, but he, too, was silenced when Blake made a frantic gesture.

They waited several moments before Blake motioned for the eight of them to form up into a small group. They did so, and Blake motioned that they should keep the volume down. "When I stepped out there," he whispered, "I saw two Gazimon near the end of the hallway."

"What?" Meggy gasped, keeping quiet as Blake had requested.

"They may have already been patrolling this lower pyramid," Cameron surmised.

Blake shook his head. "I'd bet you Etemon's around."

Cameron shot him an incredulous look. "I don't think I'd go quite that far, but we'll keep our eyes open, just in case. In any case, we need to be careful from now on; there are probably more than just the few Gazimon you saw roaming around here."

They all nodded agreement.

Cameron typed several things into his computer before looking up. "Okay, I've specified the schematics to only show this lower pyramid. Here we have the marker showing where we are. See this? We're here in a narrower passage, and passages about this size go all over the pyramid. They're secret passages, seperate from the regular-sized passage. If we stick to these, we hopefully won't meet up with any of Etemon's lackeys."

"Good idea," Blake nodded.

"But," Cameron interjected, "we still need to take as direct a route as possible to get to Datamon. We've been in here for a while and we need to get back to the others."

"And, if Etemon really is here," Meggy cut in, "then we don't want to hang around any longer than necessary."

"Exactly," Blake agreed. "So where to next?"

"We need to cross this hallway that you just went into," Cameron replied. "There's another secret passage on the other side that will get us pretty close."

"But what if the Gazimon are still there?" DemiDevimon asked.

"No problem," Blake smiled. "I'll just pop out there and see."

"Wait!" Cameron exclaimed. "You can't do that! You might get yourself hurt!"

"Aw, come on," Blake laughed. "There's no problem. We're back at camp, right? They can't hurt us here!"

"Blake, I don't think -" Cameron began.

Blake stopped him. "Don't worry, you don't have to right now."

Cameron scowled. _He's getting overconfident. He doesn't understand what I said earlier. This isn't good at all._

Blake stepped confidently through the wall hologram. He peered round himself, but did not see anyone in the hallway with him. He stuck his head back through the barrier, flashing a smile to his friends. "All clear!"

"Good," Cameron muttered. _You still need to listen to me._

The group walked into the hallway, and Cameron continued, walking through another invisible wall on the other side of the hallway. The others followed suit.

"We're close," Cameron said, tracing their path along the schematic on his computer screen. "Only a few more turns."

"Good," Blake grinned. "I was getting impatient."

"When are you not impatient," Meggy quipped, walking past him down the hallway. Blake stuck his tongue out at her before following suit.

After several more minutes walking, they came to another place where Cameron said they had to cross to a secret passage on the other side of the hall beyond the hologram they now stood before.

"I'll check it again," Blake declared.

"Be careful!" Cameron asserted.

Blake sighed. "You just don't seem to understand."

"No, you don -"

"I'll be back in a second," Blake said, and he stepped through the hologram.

On the other side, Blake was startled to find that two Gazimon, making small-talk and walking slowly, had just passed by; he'd nearly run into them.

_Close call,_ he thought. Then another thought came to him.

Blake crept forward, crouched down, until he was just behind the unsuspecting Gazimon. He could barely suppress his laughter. He reached forward and gave a giant heave to the Gazimon on the left. The rabbit Digimon cried out as he lurched forward, landing hard on his face. Blake leapt back through the hologram wall as the other Gazimon burst into laughter.

"What was that for?" the prostrate Gazimon yelled, propping himself up on one arm to glare at the other Gazimon.

"What are you talking about?" cried his friend, waving his arms in submission.

The fallen Gazimon scoffed. "Yeah right. You're always messing around like that! What makes this time any different?" The Gazimon stood and began to walk off around the corner.

"It wasn't me! Honest!"

Inside the nearby passage, Blake snickered. "There were some Gazimon out there, but I took care of them!"

"You 'took care of them'?" Meggy asked incredulously. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Not important," Blake chuckled. "What is important is that we're free to go now."

"Okay," Cameron said. "We're very close to Datamon's location. Let's not mess this one up."

"Let's go," Meggy said. They all walked through the hologram wall and across the hallway through the next fake wall. Cameron directed them further down the passage, and only a few turns and about a minute of walking later, Cameron halted them.

"This is it," Cameron said. "Through this holographic door, we should see a big door that leads to the room in which Datamon is being held."

"Alright," Blake said determinedly, "let's do this!"

"If there's anyone out there, we'll retreat back into this passageway," Cameron directed. "We want to avoid causing trouble."

"Let's go," asserted Meggy.

They walked together through the holographic wall to find themselves standing in a smaller hallway with a large steel door before them.

"Datamon's on the other side of this door," Cameron said. "Gimme a second and I'll have it opened."

"We'll keep a lookout for anyone that might be coming," Meggy suggested.

"Good idea."

Adam looked at Kunemon, who was, as usual, draped over his shoulder. "Things could get a bit hairy. Are you ready for a fight?"

"Always, partner!" Kunemon exclaimed.

"I'll have this thing opened in no time!" Cameron said. He pulled a chord from the laptop to an appropriately sized port on the control pad for the door. A window appeared on his computer screen and he began decrypting the access code to the door at lightning speed.

"I believe in you, Cameron!" cheered DemiDevimon.

"We've been in here too long," Meggy muttered. "We need to hurry and get out before something goes wrong."

"Nothing's gonna go wrong," Blake sighed. "Besides, we can handle ourselves."

Meggy struck a stubborn pose. "We've won a lot of battles, but half of them have been based on luck. We can't mess around!"

"Whatever," Blake disagreed. "We're a great team. We won because we stick together!"

"What? Yeah, that works usually, but what about when we fought Etemon for the first time? Or Devimon? Think about how lucky we got against Kokatorimon, and should I even mention the SkullGreymon incident?"

Blake scowled in this rememberance of one of his lowest moments. "That doesn't matter. In each of those times we were able to pull it off! It's teamwork and destiny or whatever! Stop being so pessimistic!"

"Guys, it's okay," Cameron called. "I'm finished. Come here."

Blake and Meggy abandoned their quarrel and Adam joined them around Cameron.

"It took me longer than I expected, but I've decoded the lock mechanism," explained Cameron. "It's possible that there are guards posted inside, and since this structure seems to be under Etemon's control I really wouldn't put it past him. That means I need to make sure everyone's ready before I open the doors."

He looked at each of them, human and Digimon, in turn, recieving nods of determination and preparedness. "Alright," he said, his finger hovering over the enter key, "here we go."

At the press of the key and with a loud metallic resonance, the huge doors before them opened outward, revealing beyond a huge room. The children entered.

The room was so large that the cieling disappeared into shadow, as did the back of the room. It was devoid of anything except the steel panels that made up the wall, a nearby doorway, and a small pyramid.

The pyramid was made of what appeared to be glass. It was upside down, with a steel rod holding it up by the tip. Within said pyramid was another, smaller pyramid, though this one was right side up. Finally, inside this pyramid sat a strange creature that looked like a miniature mechanical Frankenstein experiment.

It was very small and its body was a gray steel cone. It had square shoulder pads, beneath which its extendable, silver, whip-like arms protruded. There was a gauntlet at the end of both of its arms, beyond which were oversized hands with five snakelike fingers. From the bottom of the cone, on bendable sections, were four legs equally spaced around its circular body. Each leg was a large black steel foot with a sharp red spike for balance. Extending above the cone body was an oval-shaped dome, inside of which, barely visible, was a system that controlled his cognitive functions. The face on the cone, however, was the odd part. The bottom third of the cone was seperated from the top two-thirds by a line that was actually the mouth, with several haphazard triangular teeth sticking out of the top and bottom. It's right eye was a yellow circle, but where the left circle should have been was broken metal. Within the jagged opening was shriveled and sickly pink skin around a wide brown eye.

Blake recoiled in disgust. "What is _that?_"  
Meggy pointed tenatively. "Is that -?"

"Yes," Cameron nodded. "It's him. Datamon."

The creature, Datamon, turned, locking onto them with its mismatched eyes. In a tinny voice, it spoke. "Children? You must have recieved my message! Have you come to rescue me?"

"Yes," Meggy called. "We've traveled this entire pyramid to find you! We're here to help you escape."

"Wait a second," Cameron said, holding a hand out for Meggy to pause. "Why were you imprisoned in the first place?"

Datamon nodded - or what could be considered a nod, given that his body was also his face. "Of course, I expected anyone who came to rescue me to want an explaination of this. Listen, but listen quickly, and I will tell you the tale: I was imprisoned by Etemon."

"Etemon!" Blake and Gizamon growled in unison.

"I knew he had to be behind this!" Cameron grumbled.

"Yes," Datamon said. "Anyway, it was long ago, but Etemon and I had already been long-time enemies. We had finally met here, in this very pyramid, to do battle. It was an incredible fight that lasted for days. Finally, Etemon prevailed.

"My body was in shambles. Both of my arms had been ripped off, my dome had been broken, I was without a leg, my right eye was exposed, and, had I gone any longer, my cognitive system would have been completely disabled.

"Etemon imprisoned me here, deep in this pyramid. However, with my right eye, I was able to interface with Etemon's Dark Network via infared." At this, Datamon paused, motioning to the nearby door. The children saw a small circle on a panel which must have been the infared port Datamon had used to the right of said door.

"Through this interface, I was able to collect data with which to repair my body. I slowly returned to health and then began searching for a way out. However, somehow, I was unable to come up with a code that would free me from my prison here.

"I began to research the prison in which I sit, and realized that it needed an outside physical connection to be opened. That's why I called you here. Anyway, I didn't just sit here after discovering that I could not free myself. I have spent these years sabotaging Etemon's Network. I never did enough to cause him to suspect me, or even to suspect it was anything more than a routine glitch, but I have enjoyed wreaking small havocs across the years."

The DigiDestined exchanged glances after this incredible story. "All right," Cameron said finally, "how are we supposed to get you out?"

"You said there has to be some physical connection?" Blake asked.

"Yes," verified Datamon, motioning to a nearby section of wall. "You must connect your computer with the port over there."

"Wait," Adam said quietly, grabbing Cameron by the shoulder and turning him round. "Do you really think we should trust this guy?"

"I agree," Meggy whispered. "He seems suspicious."

"Come on, what are you talking about?" Blake asked.

"I've been wondering that myself," Cameron interjected. "Does this Datamon guy really carry enough incentive for us to free him?"

Blake looked at his friends in disbelief. "I can't believe you guys are actually saying this!"

"He's just a shady guy," Meggy explained ardently.

"And Etemon thinks he's no good," Adam added. "That's gotta count for something."

Blake scoffed. "It would, except he thinks we're no good, too."

Adam blushed. "Well, that's not what I meant . . ."

"Blake," Gizamon piped up, tugging on his partner's shirt sleeve, "I don't like him either."

"Well, sorry," Blake said, taking a determined stance with all of them. "Haven't you ever heard 'the enemy of my enemy is my friend?' Well, this is when that applies. So why don't you guys stop being paranoid and let's help the helpless. It's our duty."

"I don't suppose it could hurt," Cameron conceded. Meggy and Adam still looked as though they opposed it, but neither said so any longer.

Cameron looked to Datamon. "Sorry about that, we had to have a little discussion."

"Understandable."

"Now, how did you want me to do this?"

"Here, where I've accessed the infared system so many times, there is another port which you can access. Connect your computer here and turn the infared detector toward me. I'll handle the rest."

"Right," Cameron said. He walked to the door Datamon had motioned to and quickly connected his computer's cord to the port. He positioned his computer and Datamon's right eye began flashing red. On Cameron's computer screen, several pages began to appear in succession, each performing a different function.

"This will take a bit," Datamon explained. "But don't worry,I've interfaced with your computer system and am well underway."

"Well," Blake sighed, taking a seat on the ground, "I suppose we'd better get comfortable."

"Not quite!"

The children jumped at this, startled.

"It can't be!" Rabbitmon cried.

"It is! The one and only." The monkey struck a pose. "It's Etemon!"

"Etemon!" Blake growled, getting back on his feet. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to see who my prisoner thought he was contacting," Etemon replied cockily. "I should've known it'd be you stupid kids!"  
"If you think we're gonna lose to you like last time, you've got another thing coming!" Blake screamed. "This time, it's on for the win!"

"We can't," Meggy cautioned. "We have to protect ourselves. We only came to rescue Datamon and then leave, not to showdown with the main bad guy!" Meggy hit blake on the head. "When did you become so hot-headed?"

"Hot-headed? I'm just trying to sieze the day!"

"Hold on!" Adam cried. "If you two would just calm down, we can figure this out."

"As much fun as this is," Etemon laughed, "I've got to stop this now." He turned to face Datamon. "Hey, you slime, what gave you the idea to break out?"  
"The time has come," Datamon declared triumphantly. "I shall be freed and then I will finally defeat you, once and for all!"

"You piece of junk!" Etemon roared. "You'll never defeat anyone. You're locked in there forever, and I'll prove it to you once I'm done with these stupid kids!"

"Okay," Adam said. "We don't have to get into a full-fledged fight with Etemon right now, but we do have to hold him off long enough for Datamon to free himself."

"Good," Blake smiled. "Adam, you keep Kunemon here. Rabbitmon too. We can protect ourselves with their help. Meanwhile . . . Gizamon!"

"I'm way ahead of you!" Gizamon cried, leaping forward.

"DemiDevimon," Cameron called, "you help out too!"

"Right!" DemiDevimon exclaimed.

"Gizamon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Monochromon!"

"DemiDevimon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Vilemon!"

"What?" Etemon roared mirthlessly. "You think you can stop me?"

"Oh yeah!" Blake replied. "Monochromon, show him what you've got!"

Monochromon unleashed an incredible roar. "Slamming Attack!" He rushed forward, smashing into Etemon. The monkey Digimon stood his ground, grabbing Monochromon by the tusk and shield and pushing against his strength.

"Nightmare Shocker!" Vilemon cried, launching a stream of yellow electricity at Etemon. The blast connected with Etemon's back, sending waves of pain through his body, but Etemon stood tall.

"You little rat!" Etemon growled. "Sneak attack from behind? I'll get you for that!"

"We won't let you!" Monochromon growled. "We're gonna take you down!"

"Datamon!" Cameron called. "Is there anything I can do to help you speed up the process?"

"No, child," Datamon replied calmly. "Don't fret, I've almost freed myself."

"You fools!" Etemon roared. "You can't let him escape! I worked too hard to imprison him last time!"

"That's too bad," Blake scoffed, "because he's about to get out again, and this time, he's not your only problem!"

"You kids are idiots!" With a feral roar, Etemon lifted Monochromon into the air and hurled him against the wall. Monochromon landed with a crash, bending the steel wall with the impact.

"Vilemon, hit him!" Cameron directed.

"Nightmare Shocker!" The attack streaked forward, but Etemon raised his arms to protect himself. The attack connected harmlessly.

"Man, he's too strong!" Blake growled, clenching his fist in anger. "We've got to do something!"

"Never fear, DigiDestined!" Datamon called. "I have completed the process!"

The children and Etemon all stopped to stare. The larger, upside-down pyramid opened up, with the glass rising outward to become level with the top square of glass. The smaller pyramid behaved likewise, the triangular pieces of glass swinging down to become level with the base. Datamon stood on the pedestal.

"I'm free!" Datamon cried triumphantly. "I'm free at last!"

"There you go, Etemon!" Blake smiled. "Now what?"

"You fools!" Etemon cried angrily. "I can't believe you've done this!"

Datamon laughed, the sound even more tinny than his voice. "Etemon, you should have known I would find a way to free myself from your prison. Now that I'm free, it's time to begin my plan to destroy you once and for all!"

Datamon turned to the DigiDestined. "I noticed earlier that you have found the Crests."

They nodded.

"All except one," Datamon continued, pointing to Meggy.

Meggy nodded sullenly, averting her eyes.

"That's perfect!" Datamon replied. "Just perfect."

"You hear that, Etemon!" Blake called. "We've got the strength to destroy you now, and we're gonna do it with Datamon's help!"

"Don't be foolish, little boy," Datmon said, laughing heartily. "_I _will destroy Etemon, not you. But I'm going to need your help!" With that, Datamon's arms extended and, in the blink of an eye, he'd grabbed Meggy and Rabbitmon.

"Meggy!" Blake cried.

"Blake!" she screamed. "Help me!"

"Meggy!" Rabbitmon called helplessly.

Datamon cackled. "Thanks to you fools, I'll be able to destroy Etemon and rule the continent of Server!" Datamon continued to cackle as he hopped through the doorway of the room, carrying a screaming Meggy and Rabbitmon along with him.

"Meggy!" Blake wept. "Meggy! No!"

"You see?" Etemon growled. "This is why I locked him away. And you stupid kids just wouldn't listen!"

"Shut up!" Blake screamed, his voice cracking, tears beginning to fall down his face. "You shut up! Monochromon, get him!"

Monochromon and Vilemon moved forward to grapple with Etemon as Blake, Adam, and Kunemon met up with Cameron. Blake placed his hand on Cameron's shoulder, his own shoulders shaking in sobs. "Cameron, we have to go. Grab your computer now and let's get moving. We have to save her!"

Cameron swept his computer into his arms and they ran out, leaving their Digimon to battle Etemon. They passed through a short hallway and turned left at the end, stopping dead in their tracks.

"What is this?" Blake asked.

They stood before a black wire fence, spanning the entire length and height of the hallway. Electricity danced across its surface, and an electrified hum was in the air.

"It's a firewall," Cameron said. "It's a wall constructed to prevent passage. If we touch it, we'll be electrocuted."

"What?" Blake growled. "Well, let's go through it! Datamon had to pass here somehow!"

"Wait!" Cameron said. "You can't do that! There's an opening that's a hologram, we can get through there, but if we don't see where it is exactly, we risk getting electrocuted."

"We don't have time to wait!" Blake spat back.

Cameron shot him a disapproving look. "What are you talking about? Look, I have the schematic here, and - wait! Crap! Datamon must have corrupted my files while he was freeing himself! My schematics are all messed up!"  
"Are you serious?" Adam gasped.

"Yeah, but it's not too bad. Just give me a minute or two and I'll find the opening here."

Blake pounded his fist into his open palm. "We don't have time, Cameron! Stop screwing around, we've gotta go now!"

"We can't!" Cameron responded angrily. "We'll get hurt. I'm sorry we have to take the time, but it's a necessary evil."

Blake shook his head. "Come on, you're being stupid. If we don't know, we have to take a chance. There's no time to mess around!"

"Blake, stop it. Just give me a moment."

"Cameron!" Blake screamed. "We don't have time to wait! You said so yourself, we're back at camp! The 'us' that are here in this Digital World are just digital representations. The real us are back at camp! If we die here, we'll just wake up back at camp! Worst case scenario, we're back home! Stop being so anal, we have to move! There's no risk, so we just have to take the step!"

Cameron rose to his feet, grabbing Blake by the collar of his shirt and shaking him to get his attention. "Stop it, you idiot! You're acting like a complete moron and you don't even know what you're talking about!"

"Stop," Blake growled, pushing Cameron's hands away and walking toward the firewall. "There's no other way. It's okay, I'll go first."

"Idiot!" Cameron yelled. "You're not thinking clearly. Yes, it seems that we're both here in the Digital World and back home, but if you die here you don't just wake up! If you die here, Blake, _you die!_"

Blake stopped, lurching back as though he'd been slapped. "Wh - What?"

"Blake, if we're killed here, we don't make it back home! That's why we can't be reckless! We have to be calm! We have to take our time!"

Blake began to tremble with this horrible realization. "I - I've been reckless this entire time! I thought I was invincible! How could I be so _stupid?_ I risked my life and the lives of my friends because I acted like a moron!" He fell to his knees. "I - I can't believe this!"

"Blake," Cameron said, realizing that now was the time to console him. "Don't worry. We'll get Meggy back. It will be okay."

Blake was trembling, his eyes on the ground, with tears dropping to the floor, mumbling to himself. "So stupid! How could I have been so reckless?"

There was a huge explosion behind them, and Monochromon and Vilemon were lying weakly before them, with Etemon standing triumphantly at the end of the hall.

"Vilemon!" Cameron cried. "Are you alright?"

"He's too strong," Vilemon mumbled weakly, and he and Monochromon DeDigivolved.

"You stupid kids," Etemon growled. "Get out of my way so I can clean up the mess you've made of things!"

In another explosion, a hole opened up in the wall to the left of the group.

"Fist of the Beast King!"

"Strong Carapace!"

Two familiar attacks launched forward, pummeling Etemon. He fell back out of sight.

Casey and Becca stood in the hole alongside their Digimon.

"Come on, guys!" Casey said. "We've got to get out of here!"

"Adam, help me!" Cameron called. The two boys put their arms around Blake and helped him along.

"We're gonna get out of here right now!" Becca declared. "Tortomon, let's go!"  
-

They stood in a circle in the sphinx's mouth.

"He thought we were invincible," Cameron said. "He was being reckless, and now he's beating himself up about Meggy."

"I can't believe she's gone," Becca mumbled, wiping tears from her eyes.

"But we're going to get her back," Casey said. "We aren't going to take this! We're the DigiDestined, we stick together, and we're gonna rescue her!"

"I just hope Blake is okay," Adam sighed.

Outside the pyramid, Blake was crying ceaselessly. His face was buried in his arms, and he was curled up with his back to the foot of the sphinx. Gizamon was beside him, patting his shoulder in futile consolement.

Casey and Prairiemon approached, walking softly toward them. They stopped before the two, and Casey sat down, placing his arm across Blake's shoulder. "Blake . . . it'll be okay. We're gonna get her back."

Blake raised his head slightly. "You don't understand."

"Don't," Casey said. "It's gonna be fine. We'll set it straight."

"Meggy," Blake cried. "It's all my fault!" He stood, raising his fists and face to the air, releasing a wretched scream. "It's all my fault!"

-

In a moment, their world came crashing down. The DigiDestined were fooled. They walked into a trap. Now, one of their own has been captured by a diabolical Digimon, and they weep with this loss. The DigiDestined devise a plan to rescue their friend, but when Datamon's own plan begins, the entire fabric of the Digital World may be in danger! Will the DigiDestined unite agian, and will anyone survive this horrible plot? The clock is counting down in the next Digimon: Digital Monsters!

3:38pm 11/25/06


	21. The Rescue

Begun 2:30pm Sunday, March 18, 2007

Finished 1:43am on Saturday, August 23, 2008

-

A/N: To say that this chapter is belated would be extreme understatement. As you can clearly see, it has been over a year since I posted a chapter for this fic. Quite honestly, that's ridiculous. I never intended that to happen, I simply got extremely busy. I can't promise that posting this chapter will be a turning point and that this won't happen again, but I'm hoping that's the case. Regardless, to any of my readers who return to this story, I very greatly thank you for your devotion, and for any newcomers to the tale, I do hope you enjoy. Regardless, everyone knows that the best way you can help me write and post quicker is to leave reviews for me when you read any of my chapters. Thanks again to all my readers!

-

**Previously in Digimon: Digital Monsters**

This is Cameron speaking. We'd been looking for the Crests for a while, and had found all but Rainey's and Meggy's. Then, Rainey's began to glow, which led us to his Crest of Hope. As if that wasn't enough, the Crest of Hope had been blocking the entrance to a strange cave. We entered and I explained the nature of the Digital World to the others from what I'd been able to deduce through our journey. I realized that the Digital World is actually a shadow world of earth, and that we must exist in both planes. Blake took that to mean that if anything bad happened to us, we would just wake up back home. We then received a message from somebody named Datamon. He was being held in a pyramid by Etemon, so Blake, Meggy, Adam, and I ventured inside to free him. We had to dodge Etemon's Gazimon guards, but we were able to make it to the room where he was imprisoned. Unfortunately, just when we freed Datamon, Etemon arrived. We thought that was the worst of our problems, but then Datamon grabbed Meggy and fled. Casey and Becca showed up and helped us escape Etemon, but Meggy's still trapped. Blake began to cry and blamed himself for Meggy's capture, but at least one thing is certain: He and all the rest of us are determined to get Meggy back!

-

**CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE**

**The Rescue**

The moon was high in the desert sky, and a surprisingly chill wind ruffled the loose grains of sand from the top of dunes to chase about the desert in lazy progression. In the cold night, Blake's breath, coming in smooth succession, was occasionally visible. Gizamon, a warm presence, was sleeping at Blake's side, curled into a ball. The moon high in the sky glinted dully off the Crest of Courage.

Blake's back was against the cold stones of the sphinx, and he slowly leaned his head against it to look up at the sky, the full moon suspended above him. A sigh escaped his lips. His eyes were red and puffy; all day, the tears had flown freely.

Staring straight up, he did not acknowledge the sound of approaching footsteps. He refused to see as Casey and Prairiemon sat alongside him and his sleeping partner.

Several moments of silence passed between the two as Casey looked up as 

well.

"Man, the stars here are amazing," Casey sighed presently. "They shine so brightly every night."

Blake met this remark with silence.

After several more seconds of heavy silence, Casey looked at Blake, receiving no response, and began. "Blake . . . what happened today . . . don't let that get you down."

Blake's eyelids closed longer than usual, and yet he did not turn his head, did not utter a word.

"Blake, you did your best, and you made a mistake," Casey said. "We all make mistakes, but the great thing about that is that we're always able to make up for what went wrong."

Blake's eyes watered, but no tears fell; he had none left.

"Listen, Meggy's strong. She's not gonna get taken out of the game by some loser like Datamon. But we have to go make up for _our_ mistake - all of us - and then we can all get away from this pyramid together."

"You don't understand," Blake rasped, his throat dry and scratchy.

Casey stood. "We've all made mistakes. But the rest of us have decided to fix this problem, and we just thought - I just thought - that you deserved to at least be told."

Blake said nothing, and Casey walked away, followed by Prairiemon. He contemplated the dangers ahead.

There was absolutely no doubt in Blake's mind: Meggy's capture was his fault. He'd been reckless, careless, unthinking. He'd barged into the pyramid thinking he was invincible, and had found out too late that he was wrong. But instead of him being punished for his mistake, now his friend was paying the price.

"Gizamon," Blake sighed, addressing his sleeping partner, "I'm going to do everything in my power to save Meggy." His head tilted back again and he gazed at the stars for a long time until, at last, sleep overtook him.

-

The light from the wall of screens was the only illumination inside the dark trailer. Etemon sat at the other end of the trailer with an electric guitar in his arms, strumming absentmindedly.  
Datamon was free. After years of imprisonment, Datamon was free. Etemon couldn't remember when or why they'd become enemies, but he knew that Datamon had been a difficult opponent to overcome.

"I'm stronger," Etemon reasoned aloud. "He's much weaker than I am, I can defeat him in a face-to-face battle. But Datamon's always been good at coming up with plans, and I'm sure he's up to something that will help him get the jump on me this time. He know's I can beat him in one-on-one battle, but if I allow him enough time to work, he'll come up with something that may give himself the upper hand."

Etemon's voice trailed off; thinking these disturbing thoughts gave him a nervous feeling in the pit of his stomach. He shook his head violently to rid himself of these foreboding images. "Stop thinking like that, Etemon! You've always been stronger than Datamon, even _with _his stupid gadgets! You're not going to be done in by the likes of slime like him!"

Etemon stuck out his lower lip in a gesture of stubborn pouting. _Even so, I'd _

_better destroy him sooner than later._

-

"All right," Casey called, gaining the attention of the rest of the DigiDestined. The soft morning sunlight streamed through the mouth of the sphinx, glowing off the four seated child-Digimon teams; Casey was standing before the lot of them, Prairiemon by his side.

Casey continued, "We have to get Meggy back from Datamon and out of that pyramid." He nodded to Cameron, who stood with DemiDevimon on his shoulder as Casey and Prairiemon sat.

"Well, using this laptop, I think I've located Meggy," Cameron began. "Datamon grabbed her and took her deep into the pyramid."

"But we already went underground when we went to rescue her last time," Kunemon interjected.

"Yeah," Cameron agreed, "but this time Datamon's taken her almost as deep as he possibly can. I can't really say what kinds of traps the pyramid has that we'll have to get past, and I'd bet Datamon's probably set some defenses up against us as well, but I'm sure that we'll make it to Meggy and get her out of there!"

Becca raised her hand before speaking. "I'm as worried about Meggy as each of you are; she's my best friend and I just want her to get back here safely. But last time a few of us stayed out here and kept watch and I was just wondering if we weren't going to do that again?"

Otamamon spoke up. "I think it would be the smart thing to do. Last time, when Etemon arrived, we were able to come in and help you guys because we saw the trouble from the surface. If something like that happened again, I think it would be important to have some of us up here to help out the same way."

Cameron nodded. "I definitely agree. Last time we went in, the mission was dangerous; Meggy's absence is proof of that. But this time, it will be even more dangerous, because now we have to go deeper and we have Datamon to worry about in addition to Etemon. The mission's much more risky this time and no one should go in if they aren't comfortable."

"Agreed," Casey said. "No one should go in if they don't think they can. Cameron has to go in because he's the only one that can guide us to where we need to go, and I'm leading the mission so I have to go, but that's two Digimon to fight for us, so if the rest of you want to stay up top, I think that's perfectly understandable."

"It might even be better to go with a smaller group," Prairiemon added.

"And it's too dangerous for Rainey," Casey finished. Rainey felt like objecting, but Lopmon placed a comforting hand on his forearm and gave his partner a reassuring gaze.

"But won't you be worried about Rainey if you go and leave him here?" Otamamon asked. Becca gave her a stern look, but there was no taking it back now.

Casey sighed. "Of course, but I'm trying to be a leader for the group. Cameron can't do this without support of some kind, and I can't live with myself if I don't know he's safe."

"I'll go."

Everyone turned at the voice. Blake and Gizamon were standing in the sphinx's mouth, silhouetted by the morning sun. "I've always been a leader for this group; I'll 

go."

All eyes followed Blake and Gizamon as they entered the sphinx and sat down in the group.

"Blake . . . are you sure?" Cameron asked uncertainly.

Blake's gaze remained cool and collected. "Yes."

"Are you . . . up for this?" Becca asked, obviously trying to be tactful.

"I am," Blake replied, successfully keeping resentment and frustration from his voice. "This is all my fault, and I've got to make up for it."

"You're sure?" Casey asked.

Blake nodded. "I realize the mistake that I made. I know I'm not going to make it again. I'm going to be careful, and I'm going to be smart, and I'm not leaving that pyramid without Meggy and Rabbitmon safe and with us."

Casey stared into his eyes for a moment. It seemed to the others that an entire conversation was passing there, wordlessly. Casey knew that Blake had made countless blunders on their journey, including the birth of SkullGreymon and, indeed, the loss of Meggy and Rabbitmon. However, he realized the tensions of the others around him and Blake's determination to set things right.

"Blake," Casey said, "I trust you to lead this rescue. I'll stay up here; you can handle yourself down there."

Blake gazed back at Casey and felt his eyes nearly well up with tears. In those few words, Casey had cleared much ground. "Thank you, Casey."

"And I'm going too," Cameron added, with an affirmative nod from DemiDevimon.

Adam exchanged a glance with Kunemon before adding, "Kunemon and I are coming too!"

"And the rest of us will make sure things are safe up here," Casey concluded.

"All right," Cameron smiled, laying the laptop down on the ground so the others could see the screen. "Let's get down to business!"

-

"All right, it's time to end this," Etemon grumbled. He was staring at himself in the mirror, prepping and pepping himself for the battle ahead. He idly played with the tuft of orange hair sticking up from the top of his head.

"Master Etemon," said a Gazimon behind him, tenatively. "Are you sure you're ready for this? Datamon's crafty and -"

"I'm well aware of that fool's methods for thwarting me, but I won't be done in," Etemon replied gruffly. "I'm far superior to that _wretch!_"

Gazimon drew back instinctively. "Of - of course, Master. I didn't mean to insinuate - I mean, I wasn't saying -"

"Be quiet, you nincompoop!" Etemon thundered, slapping his palm to his forehead in frustration. He rose to his feet, strutting to the door of his feebly air-conditioned trailer.

Gazimon snapped to attention quickly. "Master Etemon, I'll mobilize all Gazimon in the vacinity and we will accompany you into the pyramid!"

"No!" Etemon snapped. "I don't want any Gazimon helping. In fact, I want you to pull all Gazimon currently stationed within the pyramid _out_."

"But . . . but what if the DigiDestined are there again? Wouldn't it be best to have a Gazimon patrol to slow them down so you can have Datamon all to yourself?"

Etemon pondered for a moment. _He makes a good point._ "It's true," he began, "that those snot-nosed brats have no place in my battle, but even so . . . if they appear on the scene as well, then all the better; I'll destroy Datamon _and _those stupid kids in one fell swoop!"

With that, Etemon opened the door, flooding the trailer with hot, dry, striking yellow sunlight. Gazimon winced and shielded his eyes from the glare, and by the time his eyes had adjusted, Etemon was gone.

-

A groan escaped her lips. Her eyes fluttered open and she groggily moved her head back and forth, awakening from deep sleep.

Meggy next attempted to raise from the hard metallic slab she felt herself lying upon. As her eyes adjusted from being closed for so long, she discovered, to her horror, that she could not move. Her wrists, ankles, and waist were all very thoroughly secured in place.

"Rabbitmon?" Her voice cracked hoarsely from disuse and fear.

"Aha, you're awake." The response was a tinny male voice - most assuredly not Rabbitmon.

"Datamon?"

"That's correct, my dear," came the response, and the small, pill-shaped Digimon hopped into Meggy's view. "It is I. And you are here in my lair."

Meggy felt the slab holding her raise so that she was propped diagonally, able to look around. She was in a huge, square shaped room from the looks of things. There was a wall of computers facing her and, against the wall to her left, Rabbitmon was being held, her four paws spread out in four directions, held tight by metal clasps just like Meggy was.

"Rabbitmon!" Meggy screeched. She glared at Datamon. "What are you doing to her? Let her down!"

"Negative," Datamon responded calmly. "She is held in place so that she cannot interfere. Her part in my plan comes later; yours is now." He motioned for Meggy to look to her right. She did.

She had felt the burn of anger when she'd seen Rabbitmon, but now she felt the gripping chill of shock and fear. She was looking at herself.

There, on an identical slab of steel, lay a lifeless duplicate of Meggy. Its eyes were open, but they had no shine or sparkle in them. It lay, completely still, unbound. Around its neck, resting upon its chest, was Meggy's tag, and, inside, her Crest. Meggy felt a rush of pride and relief for a moment at having finally found her Crest; the long journey to find them all was finally over. But these feelings were soon overtaken by the disgust and fear she felt that the Tag holding the Crest was around the lifeless neck of this mysterious clone.

She couldn't help but ask: "What is that thing?"

"That 'thing' is you," Datamon responded. "I have created a duplicate of you, a mechanized clone, an android to do my bidding."

"I don't understand."

Datamon showed his equivalent of a maniacal smile. "I have a plan to defeat Etemon. He is my main objective, my number one goal. He and I have been enemies for many years, perhaps decades, perhaps even centuries. We have always hated 

each other, and when he defeated me and imprisoned me I began plotting my revenge. I have planned for years, thinking of ways to defeat him, and then I heard the prophecy pertaining to you children, you DigiDestined. I knew that you were to be brought to the Digital World to eradicate the evil Digimon here, and I knew that you would have the power to Digivolve to become strong enough to defeat your enemies. I knew what I had to do, and I began to wait."

"What are you getting at? What is this plan of yours?"

"You DigiDestined have the ability to Digivolve, and these Crests give you even more power in that capacity. I realize that I myself am not strong enough to defeat Etemon in battle, I've always had to outsmart him in order to attain victory, but after all this time that we've been feuding, I've realized that our quarrel will never end unless I take a different approach. I hacked into Etemon's Dark Network and waited, commiting annoying but relatively harmless sabotage here and there to disrupt Etemon while awaiting your arrival. And then you tapped into the network and I realized the time had come; I made contact. You see, I needed one of you, so that I could harness your power."

Meggy shuddered. "Harness my power?"

"Why yes. I've already told you, I am personally not strong enough to defeat Etemon. That's why I need you."

"It's true that Etemon is my enemy too, and that the only way to really stop him from attacking me and my friends is to defeat him, but if you think I'm going to work with you, you've got another thing coming; you're just as much my enemy as Etemon is!"

Datamon chuckled lightly. "A reaction that I predicted, hence my android here." He motioned to the Meggy clone. "It is lifeless now, but that's why I needed you. In addition to sabotaging Etemon's Dark Network with my infared sensor over the years, I've also kept my lab down here working, slowly constructing an android. Once activated, it will be completely and utterly loyal to me. I waited until you children arrived to help me, and then, when I'd captured you, I fashioned this android to take your appearance. With your Crest already in my posession, I only needed your Tag and your Digivice to begin the final phase of my plan."

"What are you going to do with them?" Meggy questioned. Her feelings of outrage were subsiding, giving way to a returning chill.

"The Digivice and the Crest are the sources of your immense power. With them, your Digimon partner will be able to Digivolve to a level high enough to challenge Etemon, and he will be defeated."

Meggy sneered. "If you know I won't work with you, why would you even _think_ Rabbitmon would cooperate?"

Datamon cackled again evilly. "But Rabbitmon will cooperate with _you_, or at least, with your Digivice and Crest. And so, I am transferring them to your lookalike, my obedient android."

Meggy was afraid to ask, but felt she needed to know. "And how are you going to get Rabbitmon to obey that android? Or my Digivice and Crest to work?"

"Why, I'm going to transfer your spirit into the android. Your power will activate the Digivice and Crest, and control your Digimon partner."

"Transfer . . . my spirit."

Datamon's eyes glinted maliciously, and he bounded away as Meggy was 

lowered back to laying horizontally. He replied in his tinny voice, "Never fear, you'll understand soon, but now, I have work to do."

-

Once again using the secret passages of the pyramid, Cameron used the laptop to lead the rescue team toward Datamon's lab.

"We're getting close," Cameron said.

Adam nodded and shot a furtive glance toward Blake.

"What is it?" Blake asked calmly.

"Are you - are you ready for this?" Adam asked with genuine concern.

Blake did not resent this questioning, and answered with determination. "I'm ready. This is my mistake, and I'm going to set it right."

"Yeah, we'll take care of Datamon in no time!" Gizamon piped up enthusiastically.

"I just - I hope Meggy is okay," Blake conceded.

"Hey, she's fine," Adam responded encouragingly.

Cameron nodded his agreement. "She's a warrior. There's no way a guy like Datamon can bring her down that easy."

"Plus she's still got Rabbitmon with her," DemiDevimon piped up.

"That's right," Cameron agreed. "Rabbitmon's just as tough as Meggy, and Lynxmon's one of the strongest Digimon around. She'll keep Meggy safe."

Blake was not appeased. "Something tells me that Datamon's too crafty for those two to make it on guts alone. They're going to need our help. We've got to hurry."

"Don't get yourself worked up," Cameron advised. "You'll get yourself all stressed when you really need to be getting prepped to take on Datamon, Etemon, and anything either of them has set up for us."

"Oh, that won't be a problem," Blake responded gruffly. "It doesn't matter if there's an army guarding her; once I get to Meggy, _nothing _will stop me from rescuing her!"

-

"Hey! Talk to me!" Meggy's voice cracked as she screamed at Datamon.

"Silence, I have almost completed my preparations," Datamon responded dismissively.

"What are you doing? How do you expect to transfer my spirit?" Meggy was getting worried, near hysterics. She'd been held here unconscious for who knows how long, stripped of her Tag and Crest, and had had a robotic duplicate of herself made. Despite the happiness of finally finding the last crest, her own, this situation was anything but joyous. In addition to everything horrible happening to her, Rabbitmon was still unconscious and being held against the wall, and Datamon was intending to turn her into some sort of slave.

"Hey!" Meggy cried again. "How do you expect to control Rabbitmon? You can't! She's smart and strong, she won't listen to you!"

"She won't listen to me, girl," Datamon replied. "I'm transferring your spirit. The mechanized clone of you may be lifeless and fake, but when I transfer your spirit it will be just as effective as the real thing. Your spirit is what connects to Rabbitmon, and that is what she will follow blindly, with the utmost obedience. She will follow your essence, held inside the android that I control."

"You can't do that!" Meggy yelled in outrage. "How dare you try to trick Rabbitmon like that! She'll never go with you!"

As if on cue, Rabbitmon's eyes fluttered open.

"M-Meggy?" Rabbitmon asked, dazed and drowsy.

"Rabbitmon!" Meggy exclaimed joyously. For just a moment, she forgot the dire situation and was truly happy to hear Rabbitmon's voice again.

"What's happening?" Rabbitmon asked, beginning to take in the scene. She attempted to move her arms and legs, but was unable to budge the steel shackles holding her in place.

"Datamon's holding us prisoner," Meggy responded disdainfully. "He's going to use us."

"To help me defeat Etemon," Datamon interjected. "My cause isn't any different from yours."

"Don't start with that crap again," Meggy snapped.

"Yeah!" Rabbitmon added. "We'd never work with you no matter what you wanted to do!"

"Regardless of whether or not you _want _to work with me, you did and you will," Datamon responded coolly. "You came to me and freed me of your own free will, and you _will _assist me in my objectives to finish this conflict between Etemon and myself."

"We only freed you because you tricked us!" Rabbitmon spat.

Datamon was growing tired of this endless bickering. "I have no sympathy for you. You made your choice."

"Rabbitmon," Meggy called, "use your Rabbit Bomber to free us!"

"Good idea!" Rabbitmon agreed. "Rabbit Bomber!" She opened her mouth to fire the energy blast, but nothing happened.

"It's futile," Datamon said. "Do you think I'd be foolish enough to restrain you without removing your means of escape? Of course not! Those shackles suppress your energy flow, effectively preventing you from using your attacks."

"We have to do something!" Meggy wailed despairingly. "We can't be trapped here forever!"

At that moment, the room was rocked by an explosion. Part of the wall had been blown away, and through the dust and falling rock came the most welcome sight of Meggy's life.

Vilemon flew into the room, followed swiftly by Cameron, Adam and Kunemon, and Blake and Gizamon.

"All right," Cameron cried triumphantly. "We made it!"

"Meggy!" Blake called, feeling relief wash over him. "I'm so glad to see you! We're here to rescue you!"

"Oh no you don't," Datamon responded evilly. "She is my prisoner, and I will not have you messing with my plans. It's very nice that you made the trip here, but it was all for naught. This is as far as you come!"

"You're not gonna stop us!" Gizamon yelled defiantly.

"He's an Ultimate level Digimon," Cameron observed. "We'll need more firepower than just Vilemon."

"Not a problem," Adam smiled, brandishing his Digivice. "Let's go, Kunemon!"

Kunemon nodded and leapt from Adam's shoulders toward Datamon as Adam's 

Digivice began to glow in brilliant light.

"Kunemon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Kuwagamon!"

In Kunemon's place was the giant red and black beetle, Kuwagamon, who opened and closed his large pincers menacingly as he flew directly at Datamon.

"We'll handle this joker," Vilemon grunted. "Blake, Gizamon, you go get Meggy!"

"No problem!" Blake nodded. He and Gizamon sprinted to Meggy's side.

"Blake, you have to get my Digivice and Crest first!" Meggy cried, afraid that if she left those on her clone, Datamon might somehow activate the spirit transfer before Blake could free her.

Blake wanted to argue. After all, his biggest mistake had been letting Meggy get captured in the first place, and he was here to rescue her, with or without her Digivice or Crest. However, he nodded and went to the disturbing double. He grabbed the Digivice and Crest and yanked them from the clone with vigor. He returned them to Meggy.

At that moment, a familiar voice broke Blake's concentration and disrupted the sounds of battle.

"Well, well, looks like I'm late for the party again," Etemon sneered.

Blake shuddered at his appearance. Physically, he was no different than any other time they'd faced him, but there was something about the cold determination in his face that brought a renewed sense of foreboding.

"It doesn't matter," Etemon continued. "This is the last time we meet. Datamon, DigiDestined, you will all fall here today!" And with that, he charged into the fray between Datamon, Vilemon, and Kuwagamon.

"We have to work fast," Meggy cried, panicked.

"Right," Blake nodded. "Gizamon, try to get these shackles off."

Gizamon began hacking at the metal bindings with his sharp claws, but it was very soon apparent that this was an exercise in futility.

As Blake and Gizamon frantically attempted to free Meggy, the battle between the four Digimon had taken a new turn. While Datamon had been dodging the attacks of Vilemon and Kuwagamon, upon Etemon's arrival the entire dynamic of the battle was altered. Now, attacks were coming from any direction. Vilemon and Etemon would go in for an attack against Datamon, only to have Etemon quickly turn and strike at Vilemon. The battle was a frenzy, and as Datamon was not meant to be in high-speed physical combat, he decided it was time for drastic measures.

For the many years of his confinement, Datamon had planned Etemon's demise, in numerous ways. However, he knew that if all else failed, he had to have an infallible plan of ultimate destruction.

The virus.

No matter what happened, if Datamon could get Etemon to the bottom of the pyramid – their current location – he could unleash the virus. It would quickly open a hole in the floor, and the virus would rise up and consume everything it touched, including Etemon.

Etemon lunged at Datamon, who extended his arms and grappled with the monkey Digimon. Vilemon and Kuwagamon hovered uncertainly, observing, awaiting the moment when one would overcome the other.

Etemon began to push hard, forcing Datamon back. It was slow going, but 

Etemon was physically more capable and would win soon. If he overcame Datamon, it was almost assured that he would deal a serious blow to the android, and possibly even be able to delete him.

It was unacceptable. Etemon had to be destroyed. There was no longer any other priority, nor was there anything that could not be sacrificed for this directive. Datamon's plan to use Meggy had fallen through. Only a few more minutes, and the process would have begun, but as it stood, the plan had to be deserted. Besides, the brat leader had snatched the Digivice and Crest, rendering the clone useless. Datamon had no other back up plan. The only option was the virus.

But Etemon had Datamon locked in close physical combat. There was no escaping it, and that meant one thing: Datamon was not going to escape the virus. He'd always known it to be a risk, but he'd hoped that the day he released the virus would find Etemon trapped helplessly, sucked into the virus, as Datamon escaped with ease. But there was nothing he could do. In fact, the only effect the battle had had on Etemon thus far was to tire him slightly. In his condition, it was plausible that Etemon would be able to escape and Datamon might not.

Unacceptable.

It was decided. The only possible victory was to destroy Etemon through the virus, and Datamon was going to have to sacrifice himself in order to finally put an end to Etemon. Datamon hardened his resolve; he waited, letting Etemon push him a little further. Then, Datamon mustered all of his physical strength and, in one grand push, caught Etemon off-guard and gained ground. Rather than using this advantage to continue grappling or try a haphazard attack, Datamon extended his arms more, wrapping them tightly around Etemon's wrists.

"What do you think you're doing?" Etemon growled.

Datamon did not respond. He shot an infrared ray at his computer monitor and released the virus.

The effect was immediate. Meggy shrieked as the table and shackles holding her simply vanished, as did the floor that had been beneath her. Suddenly, a small black hole that was growing with surprising rapidity was beneath her, leading into pure darkness. The sound of something expanding seemed to emanate, and something seemed to quiver.

Blake was shocked by the sudden hole, but reacted quickly. He reached out his hand and grasped Meggy's. He fell flat on his stomach, but he held fast and stopped her fall. Meggy looked below her. She felt a mass coming at her.

"Blake!" she cried. "Pull me up!"

"I'm trying!"

But the hole continued to expand, and suddenly there was no longer a floor beneath Blake to support him. Gizamon grabbed his ankle in a futile attempt, but in a moment all three were falling. They all screamed, but just as they began to fall, Meggy's Digivice reacted.

"Rabbitmon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Lynxmon!"

Rabbitmon's new form was considerably larger and stronger, and she ripped out of her shackles without a second thought. Lynxmon fired herself forward with her powerful haunches and in a flash, she snatched Blake, Gizamon, and Meggy from the 

pit and landed safely with them on the other side of the expanding hole.

"That was a close one," Blake muttered, shaken.

"But we're free, and we're safe," Meggy said happily, throwing her arms around Blake's shoulders and trying to pour all her gratitude into that hug. He'd saved her from the shackles, but she'd also saved her and Rabbitmon from a terrible fate.

"Guys!" Cameron called from the entrance they'd made. "I hate to interrupt this moment, but we have a situation!"

The hole was still expanding. In fact, in only a few more seconds, Blake, Meggy, Gizamon, and Lynxmon would again have no floor beneath their feet.

"Get on!" Lynxmon grunted. Without hesitation, the other three complied. Lynxmon again coiled her powerful muscles and launched herself across the room.

"Time to go!" Adam said to Kuwagamon. He and Cameron each grabbed hold of their partners and lifted into the air.

The DigiDestined ran. Away from the ever-expanding hole. Away from the increasingly large virus. Away from Etemon and Datamon, still grappling, locked in combat. Away from a room that held horrible memories for Meggy.

They ran.

-

The dangerous rescue mission was a success! Meggy and Rabbitmon are no longer prisoners. However, Datamon has unleashed his ultimate destructive creation: The virus. And though Etemon and Datamon have been left, locked together, as the virus rises to meet them, will it really, at long last, mean doom for these two dastardly Digimon? Find out in the season two finale, the next chapter of Digimon: Digital Monsters!


	22. Datamon's Virus

Begun 2:37pm on Saturday, August 23, 2008

Finished 5:41pm on Saturday, August 23, 2008

-

A/N: After over a year of no posts, I finally posted the previous chapter, The Rescue, yesterday, and with the excitement of that, coupled with the fact that my reader traffic boomed since its post, I was able to sit down and chuck out this chapter in just over three hours. And so, for all my readers, I genuinely hope you enjoy every second of this season two finale!

-

**Previously in Digimon: Digital Monsters**

This is Blake. We found Rainey's Crest, the Crest of Hope. It had been concealing the entrance to this weird cave, where we found out that the Digital World is a shadow world of the Real World, and that we all existed in both worlds at once. I took that to mean that since we were alive in the Real World, we were invincible in DigiWorld. When we received a transmission for help from a prisoner of Etemon, we sprung into action. We freed the prisoner, Datamon, who was a lifelong enemy of Etemon, but he turned on us and captured Meggy. I was responsible for her capture and accompanied Cameron and Adam on a rescue mission. Datamon intended to take Meggy's spirit and use it to control Rabbitmon in order to defeat Etemon, but we made it just in time to stop his plans. However, Etemon showed up as well and he and Datamon battled each other. In a final desperate act to destroy Etemon, Datamon unleashed a dangerous virus to destroy them both while we ran to get out of the pyramid.

-

**CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO**

**Datamon's Virus**

The walls rushed past at a dizzying speed.

Blake, Meggy, and Gizamon were riding atop Lynxmon's back, clutching her fiery fur for dear life as she shot like a rocket through the halls of the pyramid, rushing to the surface. Close behind, Vilemon carried Cameron and Kuwagamon brought up the rear with Adam on his back.

"We get out of here, get back to the others, and get away from this place," Blake told Meggy. "I don't know who's going to win that fight, but I've had just about enough of the both of them for a while."

"We need to get out," Meggy agreed. But she was less concerned with the fight taking place, and more concerned about the mysterious program Datamon had activated. She'd come close to falling into its black abyss, and had it not been for Blake, Gizamon, and Lynxmon, they all would have fallen in. Whatever it was, Meggy 

was fully aware that falling in was not a favorable option. She'd fallen closer to it than anyone else, and the feeling emanating from it had sent a chill up her spine.

"We're almost to the surface!" Cameron called.

_Good, _Meggy thought to herself, _because I'm ready to get as far from this place as I can get._

-

Datamon had his arms wrapped tightly around Etemon's wrists. The only way the two would be able to separate would be if Datamon was deleted, knocked out, or decided to release his nemesis. And he had no such intention.

The virus was the most destructive program Datamon had ever experienced. He had created it to be more dangerous than any other dangers the Digital World could pose. It was a simple concept: A black hole. Datamon had taken the idea and formed something that would suck in and delete anything it touched. It didn't quite contain the gravitational effects of a black hole, but one thing was certain: Anything that fell in was gone for good.

"Your time is up!" Datamon exulted as the floor of the room continued to disappear. It was nearly all gone now, replaced by the menacing virus.

"That's what you think!" Etemon growled. "I don't know what trick you're trying to play, but it won't work. You'll never defeat me!"

Datamon laughed a derisive sneer of a laugh. "Etemon, you have no idea what I've unleashed. This virus chews through everything it touches. I have you trapped in my grip, there's no chance you'll escape. It's over. You're done for."

Etemon took this in for a moment. He was about to spit back some sort of sarcastic remark, but something about the way Datamon had spoken – almost like he'd sadly resigned himself to his fate – made Etemon realize that this would not end like any of their encounters before.

Fear shot through the Ultimate level Digimon. This could not be. He was the stronger warrior; he could not be done in by the insolent Datamon. But Datamon had spoken with deathly truth.

Then Etemon realized something. "That can't be true! You'll be sucked in too! You'll be deleted along with me if you stay like this!"

Datamon closed his eyes in acknowledgement, and Etemon now realized that he had fatally underestimated this foe.

"No!" Etemon cried, struggling with renewed vigor. The floor beneath them would be gone any second now, and they would fall helplessly into the void. "I won't be done in by you! It won't end like this!"

As the floor beneath their feet vanished, Datamon said simply, almost sadly, "Goodbye, Etemon."

And they fell. Into the darkness. Into the void. Into the doom of the virus. And Etemon screamed.

"Noooo!"

-

"They've been in there too long," Casey muttered, standing in the mouth of the sphinx, staring unblinkingly at the pyramid.

"They had to go down deeper this time, that's all," Prairiemon reassured him.

"That's right," Becca chimed in from further inside the sphinx, where she sat with Otamamon, Rainey, and Lopmon.

Casey knew this was true, but still . . .

Then he heard something. It was a faint rumbling noise, like an explosion with the volume turned down low. It lasted for several seconds, growing slightly in volume, before the ground began to shake.

Becca screamed as the sphinx began to tremble. Rainey cried out, and everyone got to their feet and rushed to Casey's side.

"An earthquake," he said.

"Watch out!" Lopmon yelled. A brick from the ceiling of the sphinx had been shaken free, and Lopmon flew at Rainey and tackled him to the ground. The brick smashed violently to the floor where Rainey had just been standing.

"Th-thanks, Lopmon," Rainey said shakily.

"We need to get out of here!" Becca wailed. "This place is collapsing!"

"Let's go!" Casey agreed quickly. They ran from the sphinx as quickly as possible, as it collapsed behind them. They continued to run along the shifting sands, which were being shaken by the increasingly violent. Luckily, the sandy desert absorbed some of the quake's vigor and Casey was able to lead the others as they shakily ran through the desert.

They came to a halt atop a large dune several hundred yards from the sphinx. Becca and Rainey collapsed from the strain of running through the shifting sands, but Casey stood erect, shielded his eyes from the blaring sun, and looked again toward the pyramid.

"They need to get out of there right now!" he said. "Prairiemon!"

Prairiemon was instantly at his side, and Casey turned to his partner. "You might have to Digivolve. They may need our help."

Prairiemon nodded, but the last thing he wanted to do today was to run head first into an upside down pyramid in an earthquake.

Before Casey could decide whether or not to go in and try to rescue their friends, however, he saw a flash like a fire bolt shooting from the pyramid. This was followed by two other figures. One was fairly small and hard to see at this distance, but the other was certainly covered in shiny red armor.

Casey and Prairiemon recognized them instantly, and began waving their arms frantically in the air, trying to get their friends' attention. The fire bolt – Lynxmon – continued to rush toward the sphinx, but the sphinx's head had collapsed; there 

certainly wouldn't be anyone waiting inside there anymore. Lynxmon turned and began heading straight for Casey, whose arms fell to his sides.

"They've seen us," he said breathlessly to the others. "They're out! They're coming!"

The rumbling and shaking of the earthquake had become extremely violent, but the sandy dune thankfully absorbed most of the shock. Casey watched as his friends neared, until Lynxmon came to a sudden halt beside him. Meggy jumped down and ran to hug everyone, as Blake and Gizamon climbed down after her. As Cameron and Adam arrived atop their Digimon, Casey put an arm around Blake's shoulders. "You did it," he said quietly. Blake responded with a faint, exhausted smile.

"What's going on in there?" Rainey asked.

"I don't know," Meggy replied. "Datamon did something, he activated some program. I think this is his doing."

The fourteen DigiDestined and Digimon stood and looked at the pyramid, the epicenter of the earthquake. And before their eyes, to their astonishment, the pyramid itself shook. There was a pause, and the sand at the base of the pyramid churned as a curved black surface began to very slowly rise from beneath the sands. As it contacted the point of the upside-down pyramid, the structure shuddered again. Then, as the black orb rose ever more, with painstaking slowness, the pyramid began to collapse.

The orb destroyed the pyramid as it traveled upward. Without any earth beneath it, the pyramid began to fall, and as it fell it was absorbed and deleted within the mass. The dark orb itself continued to rise, expanding outward with everything that it absorbed.

And it absorbed _everything_, from the collapsing pyramid, to the very sand of the desert.

"Oh my," Becca breathed.

"We have a problem," Casey said quietly.

They watched as the mass continued to expand. Etemon's trailer was sitting outside the pyramid, awaiting his return. The cord of the Dark Network trailed away across the desert, and the Monochromon that pulled the trailer was struggling to escape, somehow tethered to the desert floor. In a desperate moment, the Monochromon was able to break free of whatever held it in place and it began to run, but the trailer it carried was certainly slowing it down, and the virus was growing. The virus touched the tip of the trailer, and suddenly Monochromon was not strong enough to keep going forward. It powered its legs, trying to run, but now it was simply kicking up sand. The mass lifted the trailer off the ground, bringing Monochromon with it. It sucked in the whole trailer, and, with a despairing cry, Monochromon vanished as well.

"Oh, no," Becca sobbed, falling to her knees. "That poor Monochromon."

"I agree that it's sad and all, but that thing's getting bigger," Adam said. "What are we going to do? If it keeps going like this, it'll eat the whole desert. And what if it doesn't stop?"

"It could destroy the entire Digital World," Cameron completed the thought.

The DigiDestined were stunned. This was so immensely powerful. How could they ever hope to stop its deadly progress?

But the orb wasn't finished. Attached to Etemon's trailer had been the thick black cable that brought information to the trailer from the Dark Network that was spread across the entirety of Server's desert. And now that cable was being sucked like a spaghetti noodle into the dark orb. It slurped up into the dark mass, and the cable was pulled from across the whole desert. The cord was strong and durable; it did not break as it was yanked harshly. Etemon's entire Dark Network of cables that had allowed him a certain level of omniscience over Server's desert for so many years was being sucked in its entirety into the growing mass of doom.

And yet something odd was occurring. The orb was destroying everything it touched. The pyramid was entirely gone now, without a single brick remaining. Etemon's trailer and Monochromon was gone, and even Etemon and Datamon themselves must have disappeared now. Indeed, the orb was chewing through the very desert ground. But the Dark Network cable that was being sucked in was not being destroyed. Rather, it was being sucked into the center of the orb and then being pushed back out to the edge. In only a matter of minutes, all of Etemon's Dark Network had been ripped from the desert of Server, but now the orb had taken on a new form: It looked like a giant ball of black, metallic yarn. The Dark Network cables had somehow encompassed the orb.

It stopped growing, stopped chewing through the desert, stopped moving entirely. The orb of cables simply sat and pulsated. The DigiDestined watched, unable to take their eyes away.

"Did that do it?" DemiDevimon asked.

"If I were to guess," Cameron responded, "I'd say that something about the Dark Network has reacted with the programming of the orb and now the Dark Network is resisting deletion, while the orb is trying to delete."

"So the Dark Network basically shut that thing down?" Meggy asked.

"I – I don't know," Cameron replied. "They could be . . . no."

"Could be what?" Casey demanded.

"It's . . . nothing."

"No, it's something, Cameron," Casey said confrontationally. "I know you're just guessing, but if you think something other than those two things fighting it out might be going on, you need to let us know right now."

Cameron sighed. "Well, all of this is speculative of course. There's still the chance that those two programs are simply conflicting with each other in such a way 

that the Dark Network really is effectively cancelling the orb's progress. But, if that's not the case, I fear the only other scenario is one that we need to hope isn't happening."

"Which is?" Casey asked impatiently.

"The two programs may be interfacing with one another," Cameron responded. "That virus whatever-it-is orb thing and the Dark Network might have programming that somehow reacts together favorably. The orb isn't expanding or destroying anything right now, and it looks like the Dark Network has wrapped it up and won't let it move, but they may in reality be fusing together into an even more powerful program."

"Oh," Casey said. The thought of that was too horrible to imagine.

"That would be . . . _very _bad," Prairiemon said.

The orb pulsated violently. It shuddered and shook and rippled and rolled for several seconds while the DigiDestined held their breath. And from the top of the pulsating dark orb, an arm rose.

An arm covered in orange fur.

The arm burst from the moving mass of cables and slapped down, pushing against the cables. Slowly, the arm was able to push the rest of its owner out of the orb.

Etemon arose.

He pushed and struggled and grunted until his entire upper body was revealed. He sat atop the pulsing orb. He looked similar to the way he had looked, but there were a few differences.

Sticking directly into his torso were the very same Dark Network cables wrapped all around the virus. They went straight into his body, and seemed to be pumping power into him. His musculature had changed. He was no longer a skinny monkey Digimon. Now his chest, shoulders, and arm muscles were like two Olympic weight lifters combined. His muscles were unstoppably huge, and he seemed to brim with the power they suggested.

The DigiDestined watched in stunned silence. Meggy had been sure that Etemon had been trapped with Datamon down in the pyramid, where the virus had come from. He'd been held down there, and the virus had overtaken him. There was no way he could've escaped.

In fact, now that she thought about it, he definitely hadn't escaped, because when he'd risen into view, he'd come up from within the virus itself.

"This is worse than I thought," Cameron breathed. "Not only did the two programs interface, but apparently Etemon was still in there two. The _three _programs interfaced – Etemon, the Dark Network, and the virus. They've become one, and I'm afraid that the Etemon we all know and loathe is controlling it all."

Etemon's muscular form sat atop the orb, which dwarfed him. It was the size of a small house, and it hovered over the collapsed sandpit where the pyramid had once stood. The Dark Network cables were bound tightly, and only a few cables hung out at the sides or down from the bottom.

Etemon rotated there, hovering, taking in the desert.

"We have to get out of here," Blake whispered. But he was too terrified to move, his gaze locked onto the menace before him.

"We can't just leave him here," Meggy replied. "He's more dangerous now than ever. If we leave him here, he'll cause more destruction than we could imagine."

"We can't," Blake muttered, almost to himself. "We've made too many mistakes. We can't take this guy."

At that moment, Etemon spotted them.

"Ah, DigiDestined," he called across the desert, his voice magnified enough for them to hear him clearly, "look at what that fool Datamon's done to me. He thought he could destroy me with this virus program of his, and he almost did. But I held on, and then this thing tried to destroy my Dark Network, but instead of destroying it or me, it fused us together. Now I'm more powerful than I ever could have dreamed, with my Dark Network pumping the pure destructive energy of the virus directly into my system! And all this, thanks to my foolish adversary, Datamon."

"Oh no," Becca whispered. Every DigiDestined was suddenly filled with an unbridled sense of foreboding.

"It's too bad," Etemon continued. "Datamon thought this virus would destroy me. In fact, that was its sole purpose, and yet here I am and he's gone. And with him out of the way, you pesky brats are my only remaining enemies. After all this time, today's the day I finally get rid of you all once and for all!"

Etemon held out his hand, and in it formed a black translucent orb. He charged the orb for a moment before hurling it forward, straight at the DigiDestined. It flew at high speed, spiraling slightly from the rotation of being thrown, and it landed yards in front of where the group of DigiDestined were standing, impacting the side of the dune.

The second it hit, it exploded, sending a small shockwave that blew over the DigiDestined and leaving an obscuring cloud of dust.

"We have to fight back!" Casey cried desperately as sand rained down upon them. "It's our only chance!"

"Let's go!" Meggy cried, leaping on Lynxmon's back. They shot off, running top speed to attack Etemon, who hurled more of the destructive orbs at her.

Vilemon rushed off as Cameron watched, and Adam flew off on Kuwagamon's back.

"There's no way they can handle Etemon alone," Prairiemon said.

"That's right," Casey nodded, holding up his Digivice.

"Prairiemon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Leomon!"

The humanoid lion appeared in a glow of light, drew his sword and, in a moment, was gone, powering toward their foe.

"They'll need your help too, Otamamon," Becca added.

"Right."

Her Digivice glowed.

"Otamamon! Digivolve to . . ."

"Tortomon!"

Becca climbed into the front spines of Tortomon's shell and they took off at a surprisingly quick pace.

"Casey," Rainey said, pulling on his brother's shirt to get his attention, "I know you think I'm just a kid and that I can't do anything right and that if I get involved I'll get hurt, but you know Lopmon and I can help out."

Casey looked into his brothers eyes, conflicted. Every word Rainey had said was true, and Casey wasn't about to let his little brother get hurt. Even so, the DigiDestined had never beaten Etemon, and now that he was stronger, all of them fighting together wasn't even very promising. But it was their only chance. Casey's gaze faltered.

"Lopmon!" Rainey called. "It's time!" For the first time in a long time, Rainey's Digivice lit.

"Lopmon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Endigomon!"

The gigantic, monstrous form appeared. Endigomon flexed his powerful forearms and shook his mighty shoulders before bounding forward, loping across the desert to join the battle that now raged.

"Lynxmon, watch out!"

Lynxmon dodged, but her footing faltered as the energy ball Meggy had warned her of landed so close that it almost clipped her side. The shock of the explosion threw her off, and another orb was already rocketing toward them.

"Nightmare Shocker!" Vilemon's purple electric attack collided with the orb and knocked it off course, and Lynxmon took off. She distanced herself this time and her fiery fur flared.

"Thermal Mane!" The glowing heat energy traveled forward, coalesced before her mouth, and was launched at a high speed to explode against the throbbing mass of cables making up Etemon's lower body.

Etemon was laughing maniacally, tossing orbs this way and that. Only Vilemon and Kuwagamon could hope to reach Etemon's upper body, and the Dark Network cables absorbed every attacks impact unflinchingly. He was invincible.

-

"Blake!" Casey called. "What are you doing?"

Blake was the only one whose partner had not gone into battle. Blake was sitting on the ground, staring at the sand. He couldn't bear to watch the futile conflict. Gizamon sat obediently at his side.

"Blake!" Casey reiterated angrily, running up to Blake's side. "What are you doing?! You're the leader of this group, you said so yourself, what do you think you're doing just _sitting _here?!"

"It's hopeless," Blake sobbed. "I made so many mistakes."

Casey sighed, aggravated. "This again? You rescued Meggy! I thought you were over this!"

"It's not just that," Blake responded despondently. "I've made mistake after mistake. When I got my Crest, I made Gizamon so stressed and treated him so poorly that he Digivolved into SkullGreymon."

"I thought you were over that," Casey interjected, remembering Blake's special training with Piximon.

"Yeah, I got over that, I could let Gizamon Digivolve again, and then look what happened right afterward! Meggy was captured. Then we solve that problem, and now this! And this is my fault too!"

"How is this your fault?" Casey cried exasperatedly.

"If it hadn't been for me deciding to rescue Datamon without even thinking it through first, Meggy wouldn't have been captured, and if Meggy hadn't been captured, we never would have had to rescue her, and if we'd never had to rescue her, Datamon would never have been forced to use his virus, and Etemon would never have gained control of it, and we never would have been put in this position. You see! It's all my fault!"

Casey could only stare in disbelief. "Blake, you're being ridiculous! Yeah, a lot of stuff has happened, but under no circumstance is it your fault!"

Blake shook his head in disagreement, but didn't speak. Gizamon looked despairingly at his partner; there was nothing he could say.

"Blake, you've made mistakes, I've made mistakes, we've all made mistakes, we're _human!_" Casey yelled. "But when we make mistakes, we fix them and we don't make them again. You did that. You made Gizamon Digivolve wrong and you realized you'd done wrong, and it hasn't been a problem since. You let Meggy get captured, but you also led the rescue party that got her back to us. She's fighting alongside us again because of you! And if you're so afraid of making a mistake, you should realize something: This fight is the most hopeless fight we've had to face, and we probably won't come out on top, but the biggest mistake you or any of us could make right now is not to help try and take this guy down!"

Blake sat silently. He didn't react to Casey's words at all.

-

Kuwagamon flew above the churning orb. He and Adam could see Etemon's exposed upper half now.

"There he is, Kuwagamon!" Adam cried triumphantly. "Take him out!"

"No problem!" Kuwagamon responded. His pincers began to glow with red energy. "Scissor Claw!" He shook his head left and right in quick succession, firing the red energy at Etemon.

"Fool!" Etemon roared. He charged an energy orb in his own hand and fired it at Kuwagamon. It tore through his attack easily and landed directly in Kuwagamon's abdomen.

The effect was devastating. Kuwagamon released a short, slight grunt. That was all. He was unconscious before the grunt had even left his mouth. The explosion of energy from the orb connecting with the Champion Digimon's body sent Kuwagamon, with Adam on his back, flying through the air. Adam screamed as they flew at high speed.

Kuwagamon glowed golden and shrank, and in a second Kunemon was back. Adam reached out and wrapped his Digimon in his arms as he began to plummet to the desert floor below.

"Vilemon!" Becca screamed, pointing at Adam's falling form.

"Got it!" Vilemon responded, racing to catch Adam.

"Tortomon, you have to help distract Etemon!" Becca said.

"Strong Carapace!"

Tortomon's spikes glowed and began firing like a machine gun at Etemon's Dark Network orb. Endigomon sidled up beside her. He lurched as his mane of fur surrounding his chest popped up, revealing two columns of three gun turrets. "Koko Crusher!" The turrets began firing energy bullets, and both he and Tortomon pelted Etemon with their attacks.

Etemon had this nuisance to take care of, but Vilemon, in his rush to catch the falling brat, had left himself open. Etemon powered up an energy orb in each palm and launched one down at the two Digimon attacking him.

Becca screamed and shielded her eyes. The orb landed in the sand right in front of them, blasting sand everywhere so that they all had to close their eyes. Endigomon was nearly hit, and the blast knocked him over.

Vilemon made it to Adam and dropped him softly in the dirt, but almost before Adam's feet had touched the ground, an energy orb landed on Vilemon's side, and the explosion blew him away. DemiDevimon lay unconscious at the end of a trench Vilemon's body had torn in the desert floor.

"This is hopeless," Meggy said, watching from her perch on Lynxmon's back. Her Digimon was still launching fiery blasts, but Meggy was able to watch from here. She saw Kuwagamon and Adam fall, followed by Vilemon. Endigomon was getting up, but he was going to be too slow, and Becca was right in the midst of it all on too-slow Tortomon.

"Lynxmon, if you could barely dodge Etemon's attacks, Tortomon's basically a sitting duck."

"That's right," Lynxmon responded darkly.

"We have to get all the DigiDestined out of there!" Meggy resolved. "We kids can't fend for ourselves against this monster, and Kunemon and DemiDevimon need to be rescued. Lynxmon, we have to go!"

With that, the fiery Digimon bounded forth.

-

"Vilemon!"

Cameron's scream cut the several seconds' pause that had followed Casey's outburst. Cameron watched as his partner's heroism was rewarded with a devastating attack. All he could see from the dune was the line of dust left in the wake of Vilemon's body hitting the desert sand.

"We're dropping like flies," Cameron sighed, defeated.

"Blake, did you hear a word I said?" Casey yelled. He watched Leomon shoot up the orb, using his claws and sword to rip at the cords as he made his way to the top. Etemon blasted Endigomon as Lynxmon gathered up the DigiDestined and injured Digimon. Lynxmon began to power toward them and Tortomon rolled into a ball and followed close behind, churning a wake of desert sand behind her.

Leomon, left alone, leapt into the air. He blasted two Fist of the Beast King attacks in quick succession at Etemon, who was engulfed in the fire of the attacks. Casey silently rejoiced at the successful attack. Leomon landed and rushed forward, brandishing his sword, but from Etemon's obscured position came an orb that connected with Leomon's stomach. Leomon was blasted back, DeDigivolving in midair, and landed at the bottom of the dune. He'd flown over a hundred yards in the air from the impact of Etemon's attack.

Meggy grabbed Prairiemon and returned to the group. She and all the kids and Digimon dismounted and Lynxmon shot to the bottom of the dune, where she was joined by Tortomon. The two Digimon stood side by side and faced Etemon.

Etemon let loose a cackling laugh. "You're almost done," he chuckled. "You couldn't have even hoped to defeat me all together, and now there are only two of you left! It's over, DigiDestined!"

"Never!" Tortomon growled. "Strong Carapace!"

"Thermal Mane!"

The attacks shot forward, blasting into their large spherical target, but again they did nothing. Etemon cackled maniacally as he fired one energy ball after another. The ground around Lynxmon and Tortomon erupted on the impact of an orb, then another, then another, then one that hit Lynxmon, then two more that glanced off of Tortomon's sides. As the dust began to settle, Rabbitmon and Otamamon could both be seen lying helplessly, unconscious.

"No!" Meggy screamed.

"Otamamon!"

"Blake!" Casey wailed, his voice cracking, "what are you doing?! You're the only one left!" Again, Blake was silent.

Gizamon stared at his partner for several long seconds before making up his mind. He bounded forth and began moving forward, advancing slowly toward Etemon and firing his Giza Destroyer attack over and over. The fireballs shot forward, but almost all of them fizzled out before reaching Etemon. Still, Gizamon continued to attack.

The DigiDestined watched in grim silence. Even Blake lifted his tear-streaked face to watch his valiant partner fight alone.

Then it hit him. Blake was sitting there, letting everyone go into battle, feeling sorry for himself, and he had no right to be so selfish. He was a coward, and all of his friends were suffering for it.

An energy orb erupted in the sand to Gizamon's right, and he was obscured from view for several seconds. When the dust cleared, Gizamon was pulling himself to his feet several feet away. He hadn't been hit, but his small size and weight had been no match for the shock of the explosion.

"Gizamon!" Blake cried, rushing to meet his partner. His Digivice reflected the renewed vigor in Blake's heart as it glowed with a brilliant light.

"Gizamon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Monochromon!"

The giant armor-plated dinosaur Digimon stood, with a much greater power coursing through his veins. Blake reached his partner's side and hopped on Monochromon's back. "I'm sorry buddy," he apologized. "I was a coward, but it's over now. Let's take this guy down."

Alone, the two of them trotted off toward their unstoppable foe.

Etemon's cackling increased to near hysterics. "_This _is your final hand? A single Digimon is your saving throw?" Etemon continued to laugh as he charged up the killing blow. He launched attack after attack, but his aim was off. Still, he was coming closer with every strike.

"Volcanic Strike!" Monochromon cried, and a giant fireball erupted from his maw. It exploded brilliantly against Etemon's Dark Network orb, but again it seemed to have no effect. And yet, Monochromon's attacks continued.

Etemon's blows were getting closer. Soon, it would be over. Blake knew it was hopeless. He saw Monochromon's attacks fizzling ineffectively, just as he had seen everyone else's, but he called encouragements to his partner nonetheless. Blake was terrified. If one of those attacks connected, Blake would be caught in the blast with Monochromon. Monochromon's thick hide would protect him, but Blake was not so tough. But Blake fought through the fear. He would not be done in. He'd been a fool yet again, and it was the last time. If this was the end, Blake knew at least that he would go out having made the right choice.

With this realization, Blake felt a warmth spreading through his body. He felt rejuvenated, and Monochromon seemed to feel the same. Blake smiled and focused his gaze even harder on Etemon's position. Which is why it took him several seconds to notice that his Crest was glowing with brilliant, fiery orange light. His Digivice began to glow as well, and the light intensified to a brilliant glare.

The area was awash with the blinding light of Blake's Crest, and Monochromon, at the center of the light, began to glow with a new energy.

"Monochromon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Triceramon!"

He stood upon two huge, muscular legs, considerably taller than Monochromon, and held out his two large, muscular arms, brandishing his four giant claws. Triceramon's stomach was tan skin, but the whole rest of his body was covered with deep green, leathery skin. Triceramon's wrists, ankles, back, and head were all covered in the black armor Monochromon had also sported. Triceramon's muscular tail extended behind him. Triceramon's head was entirely covered in armor. The only holes were two slits for his nose so that he could breathe and two holes through which he glared with his stunning blue eyes. He had spikes spread out evenly, protruding from the back of his skull in a semicircle, and between each spike stretched a flap of armor-strong skin, forming a plate at the back of his skull. Triceramon had three horns protruding from his facemask as well, colored in alternating black and red stripes. Two of the horns protruded from the plate above each of his eyes, and the final horn protruded from atop his nose.

Triceramon roared.

"Whoa!" Blake cried happily. "Monochromon! You Digivolved!"

"What's this?" Etemon asked, eyeing his new opponent.

"Wow!" Rainey exclaimed. "Monochromon Digivolved!"

"And he did it right this time," Casey smiled.

"Take him down!" the DigiDestined cheered.

"All right, Triceramon," Blake called, "it's time to finish this!"

"You got it," Triceramon responded. His three horns suddenly began to glow with orange energy, and he opened his mouth. There, an orb of the same orange energy began to form.

"Don't think this changes anything!" Etemon roared, launching two powerful attacks. They landed, exploding in the sand around Triceramon, who continued to charge his attack, unphased.

Etemon began to throw more and more attacks at Triceramon. A few made contact, but none of them seemed to do any damage. Triceramon was not being stopped, and his attack was nearly ready.

"Idiots!" Etemon screeched. "You'll never beat me, no matter how many Digimon you use to fight!"

"Don't be so sure!" Blake smirked. "Later, Etemon. Triceramon, shut this guy up!"

"Tri-Horn Attack!"

Triceramon launched the attack. The small orb flew through the air and hit the center of the orb. It continued, tearing through the cords, and made its way to the center.

"I'm invincible!" Etemon screamed. "I'm _invincible!_"

At that moment, the attack reached the center of the orb, the center of the virus that still pulsed and now was being funneled into Etemon through the Dark Network's cords. The attack hit the very center of Etemon's entire energy flow, and in a flash, the desert was rocked by an immense explosion.

The DigiDestined upon the dune shielded their eyes from the blast until the sand rushing past from the shockwave subsided. The plume of smoke and fire caused from Etemon's certain demise still obscured Blake and Triceramon from view, but the DigiDestined all realized that no matter how strong Etemon was, nothing could have survived that attack.

They began jumping up and down, cheering and calling congratulations to Blake and Triceramon, who were just becoming visible and making their way back to the others. The DigiDestined danced around, celebrating with their reviving partners and rejoicing in their long-sought victory.

Blake waved to the others, a huge grin on his face, barely able to grasp that this long fight against Etemon was finally finished. Blake patted Triceramon's vast, armored head. "Good work, buddy."

Casey smiled as he hugged his brother. Blake had done it again. Against all odds, they were saved, and Blake had overcome his shortcomings again in a grand way. Not only that, but Etemon was finally finished for good. And since Etemon was evil, that meant that their purpose as DigiDestined to eradicate the evil in the Digital World had finally come to an end, and they could finally make their way back home.

And yet, something was wrong.

They suddenly noticed a strange sound. It sounded like a strong wind or storm, or like the air was being sucked out of a room quickly and violently. They looked around for the source, but it soon became apparent.

The smoke and fire suddenly cleared very suddenly, and where Etemon and his giant Dark Network had been was now a swirling black vortex. It churned viciously, and it was sucking in the air around it. The sand of the desert floor was being pulled into it. Even the DigiDestined could feel their hair and clothes being pulled toward the center of the vortex. But they were far enough away that it wasn't affecting them very much.

Blake, however, was much closer to it than they.

They watched in disbelief. Blake was being pulled up into the air, holding onto Triceramon's skull plate for dear life. As if that wasn't enough, Triceramon suddenly 

was lifted an inch or so from the ground before setting back down again. There passed a shocked second, silent but for the sound of air being sucked into the vortex. Triceramon, the giant, armor-covered dinosaur Digimon, had been lifted from the ground.

Then it happened again. And this time, Triceramon was lifted faster, and higher, and he did not come down. The DigiDestined cried out as they watched the giant form of Triceramon rise through the air to the center of the vortex.

Blake screamed. Triceramon roared. And above it all, the vortex growled as it sucked in more and more.

And as the DigiDestined watched helplessly, Blake and Triceramon fell into the vortex. There was a moment when they were almost falling away from them, before they were swallowed in the churning darkness of the vortex.

They were stunned. Blake and Triceramon had disappeared.

They were gone.


	23. Back Home

Begun 5:04pm on Sunday, August 24, 2008

Finished 12:00am on Monday, August 25, 2008

-

**CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE**

**Back Home**

He was awakened to the warmth of the sun upon his eyelids. He opened them slowly, staring with groggy blue eyes at his unfocused surroundings. Slowly – very slowly – his vision refocused and he took in his surroundings.

It was afternoon, and the westward-facing windows brought in slants of warm, golden light that gave everything a hazy, unreal appearance, like something from a dream.

There passed several seconds of confusion. What was this place? The warmth of the sunlight, the haze, the golden light that was soft and relaxing, it all made it difficult to focus, difficult to recover from his drowsiness.

He was on a bed, a comfortable bed, the bottom bunk of a bunk bed. The sheets had been left in slight disarray, and he lay on top of them. Across the room was a chest of drawers with five compartments, made from the same wood as the frame of the bed. The sun glowed from it, making it appear almost gold.

The floor of the room was messy. Clothes and papers were scattered about, pushed into relative piles along the edges of the room, leaving adequate space to access the chest of drawers, the desk, the closet, the bed, the door, all with a walkway of tan carpeting in the middle.

The desk was beside the window and had a lamp and a few pictures in frames of smiling faces. There were scattered papers upon this as well, with an electric pencil sharpener and several pencils and pens. The closet across the room had wooden shutter doors only slightly ajar, revealing several collared shirts, jeans, and khaki pants on hangers in the darkness. There was a myriad of board games scattered in teetering towers on the floor of the closet.

He rose from the bed and stood, staring at the full-length mirror on the wall by the dresser, not quite believing his surroundings. He wanted to pinch himself, pull at his clothes, just to make sure he was alive, but he was too entranced by this moment to even move; he simply stood and silently stared.

His short, brown hair looked fairly kept, as usual, with no particular styling to speak of. His sky blue, button up shirt was left open, revealing the white shirt beneath and a thin, silver necklace around his neck. The khaki shorts and running shoes completed the casual ensemble.

He stared quietly, pensively, at his reflection, into his own cool blue eyes, which showed little emotion. To be here . . . it was impossible.

A small creature hopped from the bed and landed beside him, looking up with confused black eyes. The creature's body was circular, and it had three horns on its head, one in front and two behind, forming a triangle. Its tail stretched behind it and its small mouth had a tiny, sharp tooth sticking out one side.

It stared at him for a moment before speaking.

"Where are we?"

Blake stared down at his partner Digimon, Conomon, and said one simple word that carried with it all the weight of the world.

"Home."

It was impossible, and yet, there he was, Blake, standing beside his severely out of place Digimon, Conomon, looking at himself in his full-length mirror beside his chest of drawers across from his bunk bed in his room with his desk and his clothes and his things in his apartment. The light played off of everything in a mystical, ethereal way, and yet there was no doubt that this was real, this was happening.

"This is . . . ?"

"Home," Blake repeated. "It's my home. My house. My room."

"But how?"

"I don't know. The last thing I knew, we were sucked into that vortex."

There passed several more moments of stunned silence as they reabsorbed the facts. They had returned to the Real World. They had returned to Blake's home in the Real World, they weren't in the Digital World any more.

But that might not be true. In fact, the Digital World had been known to be a very tricky place, with mansions where everything was fake and upside down pyramids and other absurdities. Blake realized in a moment of foreboding that this may be yet another illusion of the Digital World. He walked wordlessly to the door that should lead to a short hallway, followed by Conomon. He paused, his hand on the cool doorknob, his heart pounding.

He turned the knob, slowly opened the door, and stared directly into the hallway that was supposed to be there.

He left the room, walked down the hall and entered the living room of his family's apartment. There was the couch, the coffee table and magazines and the flower in the vase, there was the television, the bookshelf, and to his left was the table at which they ate, sitting before a small partition that led into the kitchen area.

"This is your home?" Conomon asked again, as disbelieving as his human partner.

"Yeah," Blake said, feeling a sudden swell of emotion. "I'm home. I'm home! I'm finally home!"

Blake walked to the couch and sat heavily into it, grateful for the cushioned comfort he'd been without for so long. It seemed like forever since he'd been home, and indeed he had spent the last few weeks in the Digital World. He would have 

thought, of course, that those adventures had all been some sort of crazy dream if not for Conomon bouncing up to settle beside him on the couch.

Blake reached forward, claimed the remote, and turned on the television. He smiled happily as the screen flickered to life, showing some afternoon cartoon. He wasn't particularly interested in the program, but he let it sit for a moment, simply taking in the long-lost experience of watching television.

After several minutes of simply staring at the television, at the movement and colors and commercials and not paying a bit of attention to any of it, simply enjoying the fact that it was happening, Blake finally began to partake in his most perfected of all sports: Channel surfing. He flipped channels, and yet again got caught up in the act rather than paying attention to what he was doing. He flipped channels unthinkingly, as numerous different pictures flashed up on the screen. Conomon felt slightly overwhelmed by the strange apparatus, but watched obediently in mimicry of his partner.

Blake flipped channels for some time, and probably could have continued for hours, but he was suddenly snapped from his trance by a voice, young, female, quiet, and confused.

"Blake?"

He and Conomon jumped slightly at the unexpected sound, but Blake abandoned the remote as he turned to face the newcomer.

Her hair was long and brown and messy. It seemed she'd just awoken. She had green eyes and was dressed in some lightly colored pajamas. She was considerably shorter than Blake and he was two years her senior. She stared at him and he at her for several moments, as Conomon watched in unmoving silence.

"Lindsay?"

His sister spoke again. "Blake, what are you doing here?"

"I'm home," he said happily.

She looked at him with confusion, but her eyes darted to Conomon. "Who's this?"

"Uh," Blake replied nervously, "it's – it's a stuffed animal!"

His sister looked back at him reproachfully. "I know it's a Digimon." Blake's mouth dropped open as she turned and spoke directly to Conomon. "What's your name?"

"Conomon," Conomon responded.

"Nice to meet you, Conomon. I'm Blake's sister, Lindsay."

Both Blake and Conomon were stunned by her nonchalant response, but she seemed unphased. "You want me to make you something to eat?" she asked.

Blake was still recovering from the shock, but her question quickly brought his attention to the fact that he was, indeed, extremely hungry. His stomach growled in response to this revelation, and he laughed and responded, "Sure!"

"I know it's the afternoon, but all I know how to make is scrambled eggs."

"Sounds good to me," Blake said, who could have fried and eaten the phone book and been fine with it, as hungry as he was.

"All right," Lindsay said with a smile. "Want some too, Conomon?"

Conomon looked at Blake, who shrugged. "Yeah!"

"What are you doing getting out of bed at this hour?" Blake asked.

Lindsay shot him a glance as she walked into the kitchen, like he should know such things. "I've been sick. I've been sleeping a lot."

"Oh," Blake replied, taking a seat at the table. "You're feeling better, though?"

"Yeah."

"That's good."

Blake sat, with Conomon in the chair beside him, as the television added its noise to the room and Lindsay banged around, looking for a pan. She opened the refrigerator door and Blake heard her pull out the egg carton and crack several open into the pan. Soon, the sound of sizzling eggs mixed with the din of the television.

Lindsay soon reentered the room, carrying two plates of eggs. She sat one down by Blake and one on the table before Conomon, who hopped up and began voraciously devouring the meal. Blake dug into his as well, but after several quick bites he slowed down, overwhelmed by curiosity.

"How did you know that Conomon was a Digimon?"

Lindsay thought for a moment. "I just did."

Blake frowned and took another bite of his eggs. She shouldn't know about Digimon; it just didn't make sense. Everything here was exactly the way he remembered it, but there was no way Lindsay should know what a Digimon was.

Wait, there was something missing from the house too . . .

"Lindsay, where are mom and dad?"

"At work."

He frowned again. "I hope they haven't been too worried about me."

"Why would they be worried?" Lindsay asked.

"Since I've been gone," Blake responded. He figured it would be pretty obvious; he'd been in the Digital World for weeks. However, Lindsay simply gave him a confused look.

He barely noticed, however, as another thought crossed his mind.

He and his friends were the DigiDestined, and for whatever reason they'd been pulled into the Digital World to combat its evils. Once they completed their task, they were presumably to be returned to their homes, and suddenly, here they were.

"The others!" Blake cried, looking at Conomon, who had just finished eating his meal. "If we're home, that must mean everyone else is home too!"

"Yeah!" Conomon agreed.

Blake rose excitedly and ran to the phone jack on the wall, which currently cradled the cordless. Blake snatched it from the wall and ran to grab a directory to find everyone's number. He looked up Casey's house, figuring he could get Casey and Rainey at the same time, and began excitedly punching in the numbers.

The ringtone sounded several times before his father's voice came on the line, announcing that they were not home and to leave a message after the beep. Blake frowned unhappily but chose another number.

Becca's line rang several times before going to the machine, and it was the same story when he tried Meggy's number. He was becoming rather frustrated, but smiled when Adam's phone line was answered.

"Hello?"

"Yes! Hello!" Blake said emphatically into the receiver. "This is Blake!"

"Blake?" Adam's mother responded. "Why are you calling?"

"I was wondering if I could talk to Adam."

There was a short pause, followed by a laugh. "Blake, don't play phone pranks on me."

Blake was confused. "What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean," she responded, "calling to speak with Adam when you know very well that he's there at camp with you."

Blake's heart jumped to his throat. Impossible. Camp was a week long. That was it, just a week. And they'd already been halfway finished when they were transported to the Digital World. They'd been in the Digital World for weeks; it was inconceivable that Adam's mom thought that he would still be there. Blake thought that maybe Adam was supposed to be at some other camp this week, but she would still have noticed his absence, and she said that Blake was there too.

"He's – still at camp?" he asked.

"Blake, you know I love you, but I'm not going to play this game. You're not even supposed to use the phone unless it's an emergency. I'll see you when you get back." A click signified that the call had been ended.

Blake's hand holding the receiver dropped very slowly. His face showed how stunned he felt. They thought they were still at camp.

"What's today's date?" Blake asked, feeling panic rise within him.

"I don't know," Lindsay responded. But Blake was already at the calendar hanging up on the wall.

"No way," he whispered to himself.

It was the day they'd been transported to the Digital World.

The same day.

Blake turned to the wall clock. It was nearly five. On the same day they'd been transported to the Digital World.

"This can't be," Blake muttered to himself.

"What?" Lindsay called, unable to hear him.

"What's wrong?" Conomon asked.

"It's the same day," Blake said.

"What?" Conomon reiterated.

"The day that we were transported to the Digital World," Blake explained. "It's today."

Conomon sat in silence, unable to fully comprehend how this was possible.

"We woke up probably fifteen minutes ago," Blake said, working through the logic aloud. "It's nearly five now. If we subtract about fifteen minutes from the time, it's close to half past four. It was almost four thirty when we were all transported to the Digital World."

"What does that mean?" Conomon asked, as Lindsay listened uncomprehendingly.

"That means," Blake continued, "that we were transported to the Digital World less than half an hour ago."

Conomon absorbed the information. "But that's impossible. You arrived in DigiWorld weeks ago."

"I know!" Blake cried. "It's impossible, but it's happening! We were in the Digital World for several weeks and only a few minutes passed here."

"What are you talking about?" Lindsay asked from the kitchen table.

"Wait," Blake said, following his thought, "Adam's mom thought he was still at camp. And the others that I called, their parents all work at camp, so no one's home to answer the phone during that week. So not only has no time passed, but we're here alone."

"How did this happen?" Conomon wondered aloud.

"The vortex," Blake said matter-of-factly. "We were sucked into the vortex created when you defeated Etemon, but the others must not have been sucked in. We were brought back, but the others are still trapped in the Digital World."

"What's wrong, Blake?" Lindsay asked, getting up to come to him.

But he'd just noticed the television. When he'd been interrupted in his channel surfing by the arrival of his sister, he'd happened to land on a news station, which was now showing a news story about the odd weather the planet had been experiencing recently. The news reporter was a young woman with brown hair in a maroon blouse, speaking into the microphone adorned with the news station's logo about the unusual heat and desert-like conditions of the usually lush area in which she was reporting.

What got Blake's attention, however, was the background. It was very desert-like, with a few scrawny trees here and there, mostly devoid of leaves, and dismal patches of grass scattered about the hard and rocky terrain. But farther away, behind her, stood a large figure. It was shaped like a man, except it was entirely orange and red and yellow and glowing; its entire body was fire.

"Meramon," Blake whispered, awestruck.

"How'd he get there?" Conomon asked, as shocked as Blake.

"What are you talking about?" Lindsay asked grumpily, turning to the television as well. "Oh, him? You mean the monster?"

Blake almost fell to the floor. "What? You can see him?"

"Yeah," Lindsay responded. "But mom and dad can't. The monsters have been on the news every once in a while for a week or so now, but every time I tell someone about it they laugh or say I've got 'some imagination'." She looked thoughtfully at Conomon for a moment. "I guess they're Digimon, aren't they, big brother?"

"He is," Blake nodded, "and I wouldn't be surprised if the others were too."

"What do we do?" Conomon asked.

Blake shook his head. "I don't know." He thought for a moment. "We're the DigiDestined. We're supposed to take care of any bad Digimon, and that's supposed to put the Digital World at peace, right?"

"Right."

"So if Digimon are showing up in the Real World, something must be wrong," Blake concluded. He was filled with an immense disappointment. "I thought we'd been returned home, you know. I thought we were finished and we could finally come back and get back into a normal life, but I was wrong. We weren't brought back because we finished the job, Conomon – it was an accident. We weren't supposed to come back at all, and now the others are still trapped in the Digital World and the Real World's still being messed up and we're not where we're supposed to be."

Conomon nodded solemnly, and Blake turned to face him.

"Conomon, we have to go back."

Lindsay wasn't sure what he was talking about, but she didn't like the way this conversation was going. "What are you saying? Go back where?"

"No," Blake replied with a sad look on his face. "I'm sorry, I have to do this."

"No, don't go away!" Lindsay cried suddenly.

"How do we get back?" Blake asked Conomon.

"Well, I'm not a hundred percent sure," Conomon responded, "but since we're here, we must have gotten here through a portal somewhere, and since it hasn't been too long, I'd bet that it's still there. But I don't know, it might've been too long, or it might not be strong enough."

"We have to try it," Blake said with resolve. "We can't just leave our friends in the Digital World. We're going back!"

"All right!" Conomon said, matching his partner's enthusiasm.

"Blake," Lindsay sobbed, tugging at her brother's sleeve, "don't leave again. Can't you just stay with me?"

"I'm sorry, Lindsay," Blake said compassionately, placing comforting hands on her shoulders, "but I have to do this."

"No!" Lindsay cried. "Don't go away! You can stay and watch after me. I'm sick, remember?" She coughed two fake coughs.

Blake didn't want to leave his sister. It might not have been more than a few days at camp here in the Real World, but for Blake, it had been weeks since he'd seen his sister, and he was none too happy about leaving her only a few minutes after getting here. But he knew that this wasn't up to him anymore.

He knelt down before her and drew her into a hug, a lasting embrace that spanned several seconds. He tried to pour all his warmth and love for her into that hug, so that she wouldn't miss him so while he was gone, however long that would be. "I love you," he whispered in her ear.

And then he and Conomon were out the door. She fell to her knees and began to cry.

Blake ran toward the stairwell. His apartment was several stories above the street, and it was several more stories to the roof, but if there was some portal thing like Conomon had said, he figured that he'd be able to find it from there.

They raced up the steps. Blake took two, three steps at a time. Conomon rushed behind him, somehow keeping pace. They arrived on the roof panting and sweating, but it hadn't taken more than a minute.

Blake looked up to the sky, and there, directly above him, he saw exactly what Conomon had spoken of.

It was faint, and seemed almost to be gone, but above them was a swirling mass of golden light energy. It swirled slowly, lazily, and shimmering light hung down near its center, floating in its energy pull.

"It looks like it's fading!" Conomon observed.

"Yeah," Blake agreed. "How do we get up there?"

They both looked around helplessly before Blake was struck with realization.

Well, not so much that, as that he was looking back and forth and turning so violently that his arm brushed against a device clipped to his shorts at one of the belt loops.

His Digivice.

"Here we go, Conomon," Blake cried happily, pulling out his Digivice. "This is our ticket!"

"You think it'll work?"

"Yeah," Blake said. "These things have done tons of stuff in the past, why wouldn't it work now?"

"It's worth a shot," Conomon nodded with determination.

"Come on," Blake said, holding out his arm. Conomon jumped up and Blake held him under his arm. "I don't want to go off and leave you sitting here."

"That would definitely be bad," Conomon laughed nervously.

"All right," Blake said finally, "let's do this, Conomon."

He held his Digivice up to the sky, and from the center of the swirling mass came a beam of light. It connected with his Digivice and he was lifted from the ground. Conomon slipped from his grasp but remained hovering at his side. They began to slowly lift off the ground.

"Wait!"

Lindsay ran into view, panting, her face red and sweaty and tear-stained.

"Big brother! Don't leave me!"

"Bye Lindsay!" he called.

She ran toward him. At this height, she could still reach him. "Take me with you!" she screamed.

"I'm sorry," Blake sobbed, the tears flowing in his eyes now as well.

Lindsay was beneath them now, and she jumped in the air and snatched onto Blake's wrist.

"You have to let go," Blake said sadly.

"Take me with you!"

"I can't."

"Take me with you!"

"I can't! I can't! I wish I could, but I can't. You'll be safe here."

"No," Lindsay shook her head. She felt herself lifted onto her tip-toes by the pull of the portal on her brother.

"Lindsay, I'm sorry, you have to let go," Blake said. "I love you."

A great sob burst from Lindsay as she let her grip weaken just enough for Blake to slip out as he floated ever higher. He continued upward, floating higher and higher above the apartment complex in their city, their home, the home he was not yet ready to leave and yet was saying goodbye to again, this time of his own free will.

"Big brother!" Lindsay wailed one last time. "Come back to me!"

Blake looked at her long and hard, and prayed with all his might that the words he was about to say were true. "I will. I'll be back. Someday, I'll come back."

She watched as he floated up and into the golden vortex, and was pulled into it. Slowly, he and Conomon disappeared from view.

The golden ray of light began to thin as it dissipated. The vortex faded from view as the last rays of the light vanished.

-

Blake and Conomon found themselves in a deep, dark forest. It was night, and a thick mist hung in the air, obscuring everything from sight except that which was only a few feet away.

"Where'd this forest come from?" Blake wondered. The last time they were in the Digital World, they'd been in the desert for quite a while. And yet now they were on some slight pathway cutting through a great, mysterious forest.

"I don't know."

"Guess we'd better look around," Blake shrugged.

They walked down the path only a short way before the trees stopped. There was a short expanse of rocky ground leading to a lake that seemed to be rather vast. The black water lapped dully against the shore and returned to the rest of the lake, where it vanished in the thick fog.

"Huh," Blake muttered. "I don't really know what to do, Conomon."

They sat in silence a moment before they both heard something.

"Is that . . . crying?" Blake asked.

Conomon nodded unsurely, and they ran toward the source of the sound. It was disorienting, running relentlessly into fog followed by more fog, with only the ground directly in front of them visible. There was little moonlight on this night, and it only served to make it possible to move around without much else. However, it only took them a few seconds of running before they found the source of the sobbing.

To their surprise, they found a girl sitting with her back to them, sobbing into the fur of a small creature who seemed to be comforting her.

The girl was dressed in a pink shirt and jeans, and the creature comforting her had soft white fur poking out between plates of hot pink armor.

"Meggy?" Blake asked incredulously.

Meggy jumped up and spun around, startled by his unexpected voice.

"_Blake?!_" she breathed. Her face was disbelieving and shocked. She looked like she'd seen a ghost. The face of her partner, Rabbitmon, wasn't much different.

"Yeah," Blake replied uncertainly. "What's wrong?"

"Oh my goodness!" she cried, running to him and wrapping him in a tight embrace.

Blake choked as the air was forced out of him, but he drew a breath and patted her on the back. "Nice to see you, too," he coughed.

She released him and held him out at arm's length, staring deep at him. "Is it really you?" she asked.

Blake was taken aback by this. "Yeah, of course," he laughed uncertainly. "Why wouldn't it be?"

"I just –" she stopped, overwhelmed. "I can't believe it's you!"

"Why are you saying all this?" Blake asked, his voice rising. He was getting freaked out by her reaction. "Why are you acting like this, it's just me!"

"It's just – I thought you were dead."

There was a moment of stunned silence.

"You _what?_"

"We all thought you were dead!" Meggy continued in hysterics. "When you were sucked into that vortex, you just disappeared! We thought you were gone for good!"

"What?" Blake asked incredulously. "I've only been gone a few minutes."

She stared at him unbelievingly. "Blake, you've been gone for weeks."


	24. Kokomon's Tale

Begun 7:51pm on Monday, August 25, 2008

Finished 6:12pm on Saturday, August 30, 2008

-

A/N: Thanks to everyone who's reading! It's really encouraging to be able to see my reader traffic flourish. Please take some time to leave a review! Also, I didn't include author's notes or a paragraph about the preceding chapters in the last chapter because of the nature of the chapter itself. Regardless, I hope you enjoyed the first chapter of Season Three, and welcome to the first of two arcs contained within the bounds of Season 3. Again, please drop a review after reading, thanks to everyone who reads my work, and enjoy the story!

A/N: Also, if you're looking to pick up another story and like my writing style, be sure to check out my brand new story, Pokémon: Dawn & Dusk.

-

**Previously in Digimon: Digital Monsters**

This is Blake speaking. In an attempt to defeat Etemon, Datamon released a virus that was supposed to destroy them both. Instead, it started destroying _everything. _But when Etemon's Dark Network was absorbed, it fused with Etemon and made him way stronger. We all fought him, and Gizamon's courage allowed me to help him Digivolve to his Ultimate form, Triceramon, for the first time! We defeated Etemon, but Triceramon and I were pulled into the ensuing vortex. Conomon and I awoke to find ourselves back at my house on the very day and time we were originally sucked into the Digital World. We realized that the Digimon were still interfering with the Digital World and that we weren't supposed to be back home yet, and even though my sister, Lindsay, wanted me to say, I had to say goodbye. I returned to the Digital World and found Meggy crying. She was shocked to see me and told me that she thought I was dead and had been missing for weeks!

-

**CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR**

**Kokomon's Tale**

"What did you say?"

"You've been gone for weeks!" Meggy repeated. "We thought you were dead! We thought you were gone for good!"

"Wait, wait, wait!" Blake cried, holding up his hands in a steadying gesture. "Tell me what happened. From the beginning."

"All right," Meggy replied, taking a deep breath. "When you defeated Etemon and the vortex swallowed you up, we didn't really know what to do. I mean, you were always the leader, and then you were gone before anyone knew what was happening. 

We felt lost. I mean, we could have reorganized and headed out again, but we didn't really know where to go or what we were supposed to be trying to do, and we didn't want to leave in case you came back. We didn't know what to do."

Blake frowned. "How did you get here?"

"Well, like I said, we were all confused and lost and afraid to make a move, so we stayed there in the desert for a while, several nights. I guess we were all more tired than we thought, and since finally no one was chasing us we all tried to get sleep, but we just couldn't seem to. We were scared and confused by what happened to you and sad that you were gone, and one thing piled on top of another and we all got cranky and at each others' throats.

"We started fighting each other after a few days of sitting and waiting for you to show back up, and just generally getting really frustrated with each other. Cameron said that he needed to go and research the Digital World more to help find you and help get us home, and so he, Casey, and Rainey set out.

"Becca, Adam, and I waited several more days for you to show up, but our rations started running out and we –" she stopped, embarrassed, "honestly, we started to think you were just gone for good. So finally we decided to try and go find the others, except we had no idea where they were. We began walking aimlessly and we kept getting lost and passing the same landmarks and we got so frustrated and Becca wanted to go back and I wanted to keep going and Adam didn't know what to do and Becca and I got in an argument and we split up, and Adam went with her. I knew it was stupid of me to split up from them and go alone, and I shouldn't have done it, but by the time I realized that and tried to find them, they were nowhere to be found. I don't know where they ended up, but I've been looking for them for almost two days now."

"Oh, wow," Blake sighed. He never would have expected this, but it made sense. Without some kind of strong objective and with so much unknown, coupled with near-exhaustion, it made perfect sense that the DigiDestined had to have snapped sometime.

"So you don't know where anyone is now?" Conomon asked.

"No," Rabbitmon replied, shaking her head despondently.

Blake felt like he needed to sleep for a very long time. This was bad. He couldn't count the number of times they'd survived simply by sticking together, and now they were all split into small groups and were scattered about with no way to find them.

"So you have no idea where they are?" Blake asked again. They both shook their heads. "So basically they could be anywhere."

"Yeah," Meggy said, another sob escaping her.

"Everyone split up and literally anywhere in the Digital World, or maybe not even in the Digital World," Blake muttered, alluding to his recent foray back home. He thought for a moment and then looked up with determination. "That settles it. We have 

to get the team back together again. You and me, Meggy, we have to go find everyone."

Meggy looked at him and smiled, wiping away the traces of her tears. "Yeah. We'll find everyone and everything will be okay."

"That's the spirit!" Conomon chimed.

"Let's do this!" Blake smiled.

They set off, walking through the blanket of fog, taking their time and following the edge of the dark lake. As they walked, Blake told Meggy how he'd found himself back in the Real World, in his house and with his sister and everything back to the way it had been, but that the weird weather had been caused by the Digimon from the start and it was still happening, hence his return.

"So no time has passed since we've been here?" Meggy asked.

"That's right."

"That's not even possible," Meggy grumbled. "All this time we've spent here, how could that much time not pass back home?"

"I dunno how it works," Blake sighed, wishing he had the answers to this perplexing situation.

Meggy continued, her unhappiness escalating. "But that means that no one's even looking for us!"

"That's right," Blake nodded solemnly. "They all think we're still at camp. I guess the people at camp do too."

Meggy nearly burst into tears again. "But all this time that we've been trying to stay alive and find a way back home, we thought that people on the other side were looking for us too. That means we've actually been alone this whole time! No one's even trying to help us!"

"Seems that way," Blake replied gloomily.

"This is bad," Meggy muttered.

"At least you have us," Rabbitmon supplied helpfully. She was sad to see her partner in such distress, but it also made her uncomfortable to think about Meggy leaving.

Meggy smiled, feeling somewhat comforted by Rabbitmon's comment. "Thanks."

They walked several more minutes before they came upon the sound of whimpering and crying.

"What now?" Blake asked Meggy, who shrugged. They crept forward tentatively, peering into the thick blanket of fog and trying to see the source of the tiny cries.

As they crept forward, a figure appeared, lying on the ground. It was a small creature and it was the one sobbing. As Blake and Meggy crept closer, the creature's form became more visible.

It was covered in very short, soft, brown fur. It had a wide, ovular head with three spikes on the top, one in front and the other two behind and to either side. It had two 

small ears hanging down from the sides of its head, and it had two beady eyes and a small mouth. Its body was gelatinous and formless, simply a support for the head, and it spread out simply on the ground, holding the body up.

"Kokomon!" Blake cried with sudden realization.

It was indeed the In-Training level form of Rainey's partner Digimon.

"Oh my goodness!" Meggy said. She swept Kokomon into her arms and cradled him there. "Are you okay?"

Kokomon sniffed, trying to compose himself in order to respond, but before he was able to, Blake supplied another question.

"Where's Rainey?"

At this, Kokomon burst into more sobbing with renewed vigor, and seemed even to be crying harder than before.

"Whoa, whoa," Blake said, trying to calm the hysterical Digimon. "I'm sorry, never mind!"

Kokomon fought to control himself and finally was able to speak in his small, squeaky voice.

"Rainey – Rainey's gone."

"What?" the other four all gasped at once.

"What do you mean, gone?" Meggy demanded.

At that moment, Blake noticed a Digivice and Crest lying nearby. He strode forth and picked them up. He stared down at them, noting grimly that the Crest set within the tag was Rainey's green Crest of Hope. "Why don't you tell us what happened," Blake suggested stiffly.

Kokomon began to answer, but he winced before he could speak, and they noticed that he was dirty and covered in small cuts, bruises, and burn marks.

"Oh, Kokomon, you're hurt!" Meggy cried.

"Hold on," Blake said, stowing the Digivice and Crest in his pockets. "We'll get you fixed up."

Blake and Conomon went to gather firewood and came back quickly. There beside the black lake they built a fire with Rabbitmon's attack, and Kokomon sat beside it. Meggy and Rabbitmon searched the nearby trees and grabbed some soft leaves, covered in moisture from the thick fog, and gently wrapped them or pressed them to Kokomon's injuries, hoping to provide him relief and some semblance of quicker healing. But when it came down to it, none of the ones present really knew much about medicinal plants in the Digital World, and they had to settle for the minor comfort of the leaves and leave it at that.

Once they'd gathered around the fire and warmed themselves and their dampened clothes a bit, and Kokomon had rested slightly, he decided that he felt well enough to recount his tale.

Kokomon cleared his throat and began to tell them his story, beginning at the time when the DigiDestined split up, all those weeks ago.

-

Casey, Rainey, Cameron, and their Digimon had only walked a short way before leaving the desert and arriving in a forest. Cameron had been antsy to study the Digital World more, saying he could discern the best way to help Blake and get them all back home if he had more information, and so the group had decided to split up. Becca, Meggy, Adam, and their partners were still on the dune, awaiting Blake's decreasingly probable return.

They were all still pretty shaken up about that. Blake had had a moment of triumph, allowing Gizamon to reach the Ultimate level for the first time and defeating Etemon without much effort, but before they'd even been able to celebrate the tables had turned and both Blake and Triceramon had disappeared before their eyes. To see that happen to a good friend, especially one who had shared such an unbelievable journey, was something that none of the DigiDestined would soon forget. And while they'd waited some time for him to return, it now seemed naïve to think such a thing. Blake wasn't coming back, that was that, and they had to try to get on with their lives.

But it wasn't easy.

"Where are we going?" Rainey asked for the thousandth time.

"We're just going," Casey responded tiredly. He was just following Cameron, who didn't really seem to have a particular objective either.

"My feet hurt!" Rainey whined. "Can't we stop?"

"No."

"We've been walking all day, and we walked all yesterday!" Rainey complained further.

"That's how it's always been here," Casey replied with forced patience. "We've always had to walk to get wherever we're going, and we've always been going somewhere, and it's usually always been a mystery where that somewhere is. So what's the problem now?"

"I want to stop and take a break!" Rainey wailed. "Besides, if we walk too far then the others will catch up slower when Blake gets back! And also I never wanted to come along with you guys in the first place!"

Casey rolled his eyes. "Then why did you fight tooth and nail with me to let you come?"

"Well I didn't think we'd be walking so much," Rainey conceded grumpily.

Casey sighed. His brother had been pestering him almost non-stop for the entire day, and it was even a mystery to Casey how he'd been patient enough to endure it. And it didn't help that Casey's feet were hurting just as much as Rainey's were. This was hard on everyone.

Cameron continued to lead them, apparently oblivious to their arguments, which would flare, subside, and then return some short time later. It had been like clockwork all day, but Cameron had taken no apparent notice, simply intent on going where he was going.

They continued until they arrived at the edge of a large lake. It stretched far and wide; everything on the opposite shore was barely visible. Nearby was a small dock with a swan pedal boat tied to it.

Casey whistled at the size of the lake. "Wow. This thing is huge."

"Yeah," Prairiemon agreed.

Cameron scanned what little could be seen of the scenery on the opposite bank. "What are you thinking?" Casey asked.

Cameron seemed not to have heard him, but then responded, "I think we should go across."

"Any particular reason?" Prairiemon questioned.

"I have a hunch," he responded simply.

Casey shrugged. "I guess that means we're going across."

Rainey's face was flushed from a day of walking, and the last thing he wanted to do was pedal across a stupid lake just to get to the other side and walk more. He sat down heavily and definitively in the dirt. The others turned to him with quizzical looks on their faces.

"I'm not going!" Rainey burst suddenly. He said it loudly and resolutely. He was extremely determined to assert this as the stopping place for the day.

Casey sighed. "Well where would you have us go, then?"

"Nowhere!" Rainey replied huffily. "I'm tired. I don't want to walk anymore."

"Well we still have daylight, we should use it," Casey responded patiently. "You know how dark it gets around here at night, we'll need a full moon to see and I don't think we're getting one tonight."

"I don't care!" Rainey yelled, covering his ears. "I don't wanna go! I wanna stay here! I hate this!"

Casey sighed and rubbed his temples with his fingers.

"Look, we don't all have to go," Cameron chimed. "You two can stay here and I can go on ahead."

Casey considered the proposition. "No," he said finally, "if you go on ahead we'll just be splitting this group into two smaller groups."

"Well we can't just sit here," Cameron said impatiently, careful to direct his comment to Casey and to leave Rainey out of it. "The purpose of us leaving the others in the first place was to come out here and gather information, and I can tell you right now that there is no information to be gathered here. But I think I know where there is, and I'm trying to get there so we really do need to keep going."  
"I'm sorry, Rainey," Casey shrugged. "I really do wish I could say we didn't have 

to walk any more, but we do. We have a mission, and we can't just quit because we feel a little tired. We have to keep going."

But Rainey continued to pout. He crossed his arms and held them tightly to his chest, tensing his whole body and looking as angry and determined as he could. Lopmon mimicked him, trying to support his partner and secretly hoping that the walking would end, as well.

"Rainey, you're being ridiculous," Casey said, a hint of anger in his voice.

But Rainey simply shook his head. "I'm staying!"

"Rainey, I'm not going to put up with this!" Casey retorted, his voice rising steadily. "We all have to stick together! We can't let Cameron go on alone because then we'll get split up, and we definitely can't let you stay here all by yourself."

Rainey was deeply offended, and it showed on his face. "I'm _not_ all by myself! I have Lopmon right here with me!"

Casey sighed. "I know, but you're just not strong enough to protect yourself."

That was the straw that broke the camel's back. Rainey's eyes welled with hot, angry tears and he screamed back at his brother, "I am so strong enough to protect myself! Lopmon is strong enough to look after me, and I'm old enough to take care of myself!"

Casey was shocked by Rainey's outburst, but after a moment's hesitation his face hardened. "Fine. If you're going to be so stubborn we'll go across without you. You can hang around here and rest all you want and I'll come back across and get you at sunset."

Rainey was surprised that his brother was actually going to allow this, but he kept his defiant, angry look on his face as Casey, Cameron, DemiDevimon, and Prairiemon all boarded the swan boat and set off for the other side. Rainey pouted and sat in the dirt, but he watched the whole time they traveled across the water, and, despite himself, felt the slight tinge of loneliness.

It took several minutes, but soon the boat was far enough away that Rainey could only catch the occasional glint of the sun shining from the polished white surface of the boat. Rainey lay back on his back, Lopmon sprawling beside him, and they both gazed lazily at the clouds. Now that he'd won his freedom, there ironically really wasn't anything to do.

They lay for some time, relaxing and chatting slightly, before they were approached.

Rainey first saw him upside down, as he appeared standing above Rainey and staring quizzically down into his face. Lopmon, who had dozed off slightly, awoke slowly. Upon realizing that a new face had appeared, Lopmon jumped to his feet, his hair bristling and standing on end, and he faced off against the newcomer.

"What do you want?" Lopmon demanded forcefully.

"Whoa, whoa!" the mysterious Digimon responded, holding up his hands in an attempt to calm Lopmon. "I don't want any trouble."

"Wait, Lopmon," Rainey said, rising to a sitting position. He turned and addressed the newcomer. "Who are you?"

The Digimon smirked. "My name is Impmon."

He stood slightly taller than Lopmon, a little over half Rainey's height, and humanoid. He was covered in short, deep purple fur that looked almost black and had a healthy sheen to it. The ears sticking out of either side of his head drooped somewhat at the tips. He had large feet that ended in three claws on each, and a tail stuck out behind him. His neck was adorned with a bright red scarf tied round it, which matched the red gloves he wore on his three-fingered hands. The only portion of him not covered in his dark fur was his face, which had white fur surrounding his small mouth, his tiny black nose, and his large, emerald green eyes. Finally, his chest was adorned with a yellow circle emblem, a smiley face, which smiled to show serrated teeth.

"Hello, Impmon," Rainey said with a smile. "My name is Rainey and this is my partner, Lopmon."

"Nice to meetcha, Rainey!" Impmon responded cordially, extending his hand. Rainey went to shake it, but Impmon withdrew it at the last moment and laughed. Rainey chuckled good-naturedly, and Lopmon frowned unhappily.

"So," Impmon continued, "what are you doing out here all by yourselves?"

"We're travelling with my brother and my friend, but we were tired so they went on without us," replied Rainey.

"They left you, huh?" Impmon deduced, shaking his head sadly.

"No!" Rainey corrected quickly. "They didn't leave us! I mean, they did, but they're coming back later tonight."

"They are, huh?" Impmon replied, but he seemed unsure about it. "You sure about that?"

"Yeah!" Rainey nodded resolutely. "My brother would never leave me!"

Impmon shrugged. "Well, I didn't want to say anything, but I was watching from the bushes when you got into that argument earlier." Rainey blushed slightly. Impmon continued, "I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but you were yelling so much at each other that you caught my attention. I mean, you two had it out. You really think your brother's coming back after something like that?"

"Yeah," Rainey responded, but this time he didn't sound so sure.

"Of course he is!" Lopmon interjected forcefully, with a reassuring glance at Rainey. Impmon shot Lopmon a dirty look before speaking again.

"Look, kid, I hate to say it, but I saw how you guys were. He said he didn't want you alone, didn't think you could handle it. He really seemed to care for you, but then when you got in his face, I – well, I think he'd had it."

"What do you mean?" Rainey asked, his heart sinking.

"Don't listen to him," Lopmon grunted, putting a comforting paw on Rainey's shoulder. "He doesn't know what he's talking about."

"I mean, the guy likes you," Impmon continued, both he and Rainey oblivious to Lopmon's objections, "but there's only so much someone can take. I mean he listened to you complaining all day, and he was probably at the end of his rope. He tried everything to get you to go with him, but you weren't budging and he could see that, and then you finally said that you basically didn't need him at all, and that's when he snapped. And he left."

"You – you don't think he's coming back?" Rainey asked, feeling panic well inside him.

Impmon frowned. "I mean, who's to say?"

A sob escaped from Rainey as he felt the gravity of the situation. He'd only wanted to rest for a while, but he'd complained all day, and he really must have hurt Casey's feelings when he yelled at him. Rainey thought he was finally being treated well, but he'd really made a huge mistake.

Lopmon watched as his partner went through the obvious internal turmoil. "Rainey! Snap out of it! Don't listen to this guy!"

But it was too late. Rainey started crying openly. "I didn't mean to! I didn't mean to hurt his feelings! I didn't mean to make him go off and leave me!"

"Rainey!" Lopmon cried, moving to comfort his friend.

Impmon pushed Lopmon out of the way and put a comforting hand on Rainey's shoulder. "There, there," he said. "It'll be all right."

"No!" Rainey sobbed. "He left me! He left me all alone!"

"I'm still here," Lopmon said quietly, feebly.

"Look, kid, cheer up," Impmon encouraged. "You don't need him anyway!"

"Yes I do!"

"No, no, you're missing the point," Impmon continued. "Look, maybe he left, maybe he's not coming back, but at some point he'll feel bad for leaving you."

Rainey's sobbing lightened somewhat as he pondered this.

"So what's the best thing you can do?" Impmon questioned.

"I guess . . . I should wait for him to get back?" Rainey supplied.

"No!" Impmon replied forcefully. "You don't want him to come back and find you in the same spot crying your eyes out like the baby he treats you like you are! You want to go find him and stand up strong and prove to him that you really can take care of yourself!"

Rainey thought about it for a moment, nodding slowly.

"Rainey, I don't know about this," Lopmon murmured.

"That's a good idea!" Rainey said to Impmon. He wiped his tears and stood to his feet. He looked about with renewed determination. He would show his brother that 

he wasn't helpless by finding his brother on his own. But as he looked around, he suddenly realized that he had no way to pursue Casey and Cameron across the lake.

"Wait, Impmon," Rainey said. "My brother took the last boat. How are we supposed to get across?"

"That part's easy," Impmon responded with a dismissive wave of his hand. "I'm from around these parts, I'll show you the way around the lake."

"Would you really?" Rainey asked with a smile.

"We don't need his help, Rainey," Lopmon said.

"Why not?"

"_We're _a team," Lopmon replied stubbornly, "and we always have been! We can find our way without this guy's help."

"Don't be silly, Lopmon," Rainey said with a frown. "Even if we could find our way, it'll be faster if he helps us. Besides, he might know some shortcuts."

"Definitely," Impmon said with a wink.

Lopmon grumbled unhappily to himself.

"Let's go!" Rainey laughed, excited at this brand new adventure he was going to have without anyone holding his hand. With that, Impmon set out, followed by Rainey and an unhappy Lopmon.

That evening, as the sun was setting in the sky, no matter how much or how loudly he screamed, Casey couldn't find his brother.

-

Lopmon pushed grumpily along the challenging forest path. Impmon had assured Rainey the previous day that the best shortcut across the lake was a bridge that went over, but they had to go through the forest to get there. Of course, despite Lopmon's objections and logical rebuttals, Rainey was hanging on every bit of advice Impmon gave, and they said goodbye to the lake and trounced through the forest.

They took a break at one point in the afternoon so that Rainey could rest, and Impmon said he had something to do and disappeared for nearly an hour, during which Lopmon continually tried to appeal to Rainey's senses and show him that Impmon had some coy malicious streak to him. Rainey would have none of it, and finally snapped at Lopmon to be quiet and wouldn't stand for Lopmon saying anything about Impmon.

It had become oppressively dark that night, and they walked quite a ways, but the second Rainey mentioned he was tired, Impmon suggested they set up camp, which certainly made Rainey happy. Impmon said that he would gather food and Lopmon should get some firewood while Rainey rested, and they both set out, but when Lopmon returned with the firewood, they were gone. He spent a few panicked minutes searching the forest and calling out for Rainey before he heard his partner's laugh. Impmon thought it would be funny for them to move the camp and hide from Lopmon.

"Rainey, you shouldn't do that!" Lopmon scolded gently, trying to slow his beating heart. "I was worried sick! And what if you'd gotten in trouble and I couldn't find you?"

Rainey scoffed at this. He told Lopmon that he was old enough to handle himself, that Lopmon was being stupid like Casey, and that if anything really bad had happened, Impmon was right there. Lopmon pouted about this.

Regardless, Lopmon returned to where he'd dropped the firewood and brought it to the new campsite while Impmon gathered giant yellow fruit resembling fat pears from the nearby trees. Lopmon returned and laid down the firewood to set the fire. He was about to use his own Blazing Fire technique to start the blaze, but Impmon cut in front of him and sent a small fireball from his gloved fingertip to the pile of sticks. Rainey thanked him for starting the fire, and Lopmon sat and pouted.

Then, when Impmon went to divide up the food rations, he set out three piles of the fruit he gathered, but began laughing and tossing the fruit of one pile at Lopmon. He threw the fruit, some of which hit Lopmon painfully, leaking spots of sticky juice into Lopmon's brown fur. Lopmon yelled at him to stop, but both Rainey and Impmon were laughing and throwing fruit – Impmon throwing with a considerably greater amount of force. Lopmon caught an evil glint in the green eyes of the Digimon as he screamed at the two of them to stop and they laughed and continued obliviously.

They finally stopped and all ate and fell asleep quickly – or so Lopmon thought. He fell asleep, but soon after was awakened to a loud clap. He jumped up, startled by the sudden noise, and began dancing about because the fire at his tail was smoking with fire. Rainey and Impmon laughed; Impmon had shot a weak fire attack at Lopmon and then clapped, saying he'd been playing a practical joke. Again, Lopmon scolded Impmon and assured Rainey that he shouldn't be doing such things, and again Rainey frowned and returned the criticism, telling Lopmon not to be such a killjoy.

And that had been Lopmon's night. He'd gotten sleep in small, unfulfilling bits, as he'd been too worried that Impmon would play some other joke or take Rainey off somewhere in the name of "fun." Now, as Lopmon stumbled through the thick brush after Rainey and Impmon, he kept a close watch on the two. And yet Impmon was _still _playing tricks. He would innocently push branches out of Rainey's way, then let them snap back into Lopmon's face or stomach after Rainey had passed. Lopmon would be hurt and knocked back, but Impmon and Rainey would laugh and say it was all in good fun.

They walked on and on, until Rainey complained that his feet hurt, at which point they stopped. It was fairly dark, and Impmon suggested that he go get some water while the two of them sat there. Again, Lopmon wanted to talk to Rainey about Impmon's jokes that were mean and hurtful and didn't seem to be very joking at all, but he knew better than to try that again.

When Impmon returned, he was carrying a leaf like a bowl, inside of which he had clear, refreshing water. He was holding the leaf in position with his bandana; he held the edges and was able to hold the cloth in such a way as to keep the leaf from 

spilling. He took the water to Rainey and let him take the leaf and sip the water. Then Impmon turned, still holding the bandana.

"I got a special present for you, Rainey," Impmon said. He reached into the bandana and withdrew a giant, disgusting glob of mud. He cackled and hurled the mud ball right at Lopmon. Lopmon cried out, but it was too late. The mud ball hit him square in the face, covering his entire head with dripping, stinky mud.

Impmon fell to the ground, literally writing in laughter, and Rainey joined in, chuckling and pointing at Lopmon. Lopmon watched the two of them as he felt himself about to burst.

"All right, that's it!" Lopmon exploded. "I've had it! These jokes aren't funny at all, and I'm tired of everyone picking on me!"

"Hey, we're just having a good time," Rainey replied defensively.

"It's _not _a good time!" Lopmon shot back. "This is mean and hurtful!"

"Don't be a party-pooper!" Impmon quipped.

"Shut up!" Lopmon screamed. And then, before he even knew what he was doing, he was flying through the air straight at Impmon, whose face had changed from derision to concern rather quickly.

"What are you doing?" Impmon cried.

"Lopmon!" Rainey called.

"I'm tired of you!" Lopmon yelled, and he rammed his horned head into Impmon's side as hard as he could. Impmon went flying, and he landed in the dirt with a thud, skidding back a few feet.

"Impmon!" Rainey cried. He ran up to Lopmon and grabbed his paw forcefully. "What do you think you're doing?"

"My arm!" Impmon wailed, holding his arm and rolling around in pain.

"Lopmon, how could you do that?" Rainey demanded. "He's taken the time to help us get to where we're going, and all you're doing is being a bad sport!"

Lopmon tried to retort, but he was so flustered that he couldn't form any words.

"I don't know what's gotten into you lately, but I don't like it!" Rainey continued angrily. "You've done nothing but talk bad about Impmon and give him dirty looks!"

"He's a bad guy!" Lopmon cried pleadingly.

"That's it!" Rainey said forcibly. "If you're going to be like that, I don't even know why you came along in the first place."

Lopmon was stunned. "What? What are you saying?"

"I'm saying you didn't have to come if you were going to be like this," Rainey continued. "And you're not doing anything different, and I'm tired of it, and I'm sick of it, and I think you should just leave!"

"Rainey . . . you can't be serious," Lopmon said with a sob.

"I am!"

"But . . . what if you need me?"

"_I'll_ protect him," Impmon, who had risen to his feet, interjected, coming to stand beside Rainey.

"Rainey . . ."

"No," Rainey grunted, shaking his head. "I said get going!"

Lopmon stood and stared at his partner in disbelief. Rainey's gaze hardened when Lopmon didn't move, and he finally ripped the Crest from his neck and the Digivice from his belt loop and threw them on the ground at Lopmon's feet.

"I _said_ get going!" he yelled.

"Fine!" Lopmon yelled back, though his was wrought with the tears that were beginning to flow. He grabbed the Digivice and Crest, turned, and fled back the way they'd come. As he turned, through tear-filled vision, he saw Impmon sneer.

-

Once Lopmon had gone, Rainey sat heavily on the ground and began to cry himself.

"What's wrong?" Impmon wondered.

"It's just . . . he's my partner, and I yelled at him and told him to go away and I didn't mean to!" Rainey wept. "It's the exact same thing I did with Casey!"

Impmon frowned. He hadn't expected Rainey to feel bad about Lopmon's departure. But he already knew what needed to be done.

"Don't worry, Rainey," Impmon said quietly, patting his shoulder. "I'll go try and talk some sense into him."

Rainey continued to sob as Impmon travelled into the darkness. It wasn't hard to find Lopmon. He was so distressed he'd left a very visible trail haphazardly through the forest, and Impmon soon came upon the sound of his despondent cries.

He found Lopmon lying defeatedly in a clearing, the Digivice and Crest nearby. Impmon dropped down from the tree limb he was standing on, landing on the ground near Lopmon with a light thud. Lopmon looked up in a mix of anger and sorrow, filled with rage at Impmon's presence but still distraught at his situation with Rainey.

"What are you doing here?" Lopmon growled shakily. He tried to push himself to his feet, but it was hard. He was weak from the emotional release of such crying, but he also felt his energy leaving him for another reason. As a partner Digimon to one of the DigiDestined, he drew energy from being beside his partner. The Digivice was a conduit for Rainey's very own life energy to power Lopmon, and now that he had abandoned both the Digivice and Lopmon, Lopmon could feel himself weakening significantly with each passing second.

He gasped as the breath was pushed from him. Impmon's foot had connected, hard, with Lopmon's stomach. Lopmon was lifted from the ground, and rolled back, coughing.

"You should have just kept your mouth shut," Impmon jeered, delivering another harsh kick. "I never intended you to stay with us to the end anyway, but maybe you 

would've had a chance if you would have just _shut up!_" With the words "shut up," he delivered a devastating blow to Lopmon, who released a squeak of a cry at the force of the blow.

"It's too bad," Impmon muttered. "I had fun playing with you."

He held up his finger, and a tiny red fireball appeared there. "Bada Boom!" he cried, and hurled the fireball at Lopmon. It connected, and he cried out as it singed his fur. Impmon continued the assault for minutes that passed like agonizing hours before finally relenting and heading through the forest to rejoin Rainey. He left a beaten and unconscious Kokomon, who had DeDigivolved from the pain of Impmon's attacks mixed with the extreme weakness and lack of energy he's experienced.

When Impmon returned to Rainey's side, he looked morose.

"What's wrong?" Rainey asked.

"I'm sorry to have to tell you this," Impmon replied somberly. "I tried to talk some sense into him, but he wouldn't listen to me. He tried to attack me and said that he didn't need you and didn't like you anyway and didn't ever want to see you again."

Rainey was stunned. "Lopmon . . . _said that?_"

"I'm sorry," Impmon responded sadly.

Rainey's brow furrowed as he tried to build anger against Lopmon. Impmon went to him and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Don't worry, Rainey. I'm here for you."

-

"I guess I laid there for hours before I woke up, and when I woke up I could only sit there and cry. I don't know how long I was there before you guys showed up," Kokomon concluded.

"That's horrible!" Meggy cried.

"And now Rainey's out there somewhere, with this Impmon character," Blake muttered darkly.

They all exchanged glances. As if everyone split up weren't enough, it seemed that fate would stop at nothing to put them all into the worst possible position.

"I'm so sorry, Kokomon," Blake continued. "But I promise you, we're going to find everyone and get everyone back together again."

Kokomon nodded weakly, drained after the long story.

"And we're definitely going to find Rainey and teach that Impmon a thing or two!" Blake growled resolutely.

They all nodded.

"We'll stay here and let you rest," Meggy said, "and then we'll all go out and get everyone back together again."

Kokomon nodded, attempting a half-hearted smile, and snuggled into Meggy's arms and quickly fell into a troubled sleep.


	25. Digitamamon's Diner

Begun 12:41am on Wednesday, September 03, 2008

Finished 5:30pm on Sunday, October 12, 2008

-

A/N: Sorry about the wait. I went on the ridiculously fortunate ultimatelonghiatusdestroyer spree a little over a month ago, chucking out a few chapters in a few days, and then, with the hope of continuing at a chapter-a-week pace, I went into a month-long hiatus brought on by the ridiculous business of being a college student, especially a theatre major and fraternity member. Regardless, I have at long last delivered the twenty-fifth chapter which I'm _sure _you were all dying to get your hands on (figuratively). Well, get to it!

-

**Previously in Digimon: Digital Monsters**

This is Meggy speaking. After weeks, we, the DigiDestined, had broken up and given up hope for Blake ever returning. Then one night, much to my surprise, Blake came walking up to me. I told him how we had split up and how I'd ended up alone, and then we came upon Kokomon. Kokomon told us that he and Rainey had separated from the others and met Impmon, who tricked Rainey into abandoning Kokomon. We helped nurse Kokomon back to health and now we're more determined than ever to get everyone back together again!

-

**CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE**

**Digitamamon's Diner**

Casey walked wearily along the dusty path running alongside the large lake. He'd been walking along the edge of the lake for days, and was positively drained.

Against his better judgment, Casey had finally let Rainey stay by himself with Lopmon. It was only for a day, not even half a day, actually, and Casey figured, Hey, what's the worst that could happen?

When he'd returned that night, Rainey and Lopmon were gone. He yelled their names until he was hoarse and heard no reply. He didn't know what to do, and though he felt badly about it, he decided against returning to Cameron. Though he could have benefited from Cameron's help searching for his brother, he certainly couldn't waste any time trekking back across the lake to ask for it.

Not that Cameron would have helped anyway. Casey didn't understand it and couldn't explain it, but Cameron wasn't focused on the same objective as the others at all. He had always been prone to going off on his own, getting lost in his own world, conducting his own so-called "research," all under the pretense of helping him understand the Digital World better, which would supposedly help supply them with a way home. More recently, Cameron had added the pretense that he would also be able to help find Blake, but neither of these things seemed entirely true.

Sure, Cameron was interested in returning home, but his research had always been more about learning for the sake of learning, rather than a means to an end. Cameron just seemed to have his own agenda, and Casey didn't even think Cameron knew exactly what that was, but he was always in pursuit of it. Cameron was friends with everyone in the group, and he certainly enjoyed being with them, but it seemed to Casey that he often caught glances from Cameron that belied an attitude of being around commoners.

Now that Blake had disappeared within the vortex, it seemed that this had spurned the drive in Cameron by ten times, and he was darkly determined to reach whatever unknown conclusion he was seeking.

With all this in mind, Casey left on his own, just he and Prairiemon, searching for Rainey and Lopmon, who he had looked for all day, every day, making his way along the edge of the lake with the hypothesis that Rainey had gone to find Casey himself by following the lake, but Casey had yet to even find a clue to Rainey's whereabouts.

Now Casey felt his feet dragging with every step. The sun was nearly at its peak in the sky and Casey was ready for lunch. He and Prairiemon had been living off the sparse rations they had with them and the few berries and fruits they could grab in passing as they continued walking, but their supply was running low and they only had rations for the two of them for another day's worth, maybe two.

"Think we should eat yet?" Casey asked Prairiemon, breaking a silence that had spanned several minutes now.

Prairiemon considered his growling stomach before answering. "I guess we should walk just a few more minutes, just in case."

Casey nodded, and they continued to walk forward. It was at that moment that Casey noticed a small, white-washed structure in the distance. "Wonder what that is," Casey pondered aloud.

They continued and the structure grew in their vision. As they came upon it, they saw a squat, rectangular building that was fairly unremarkable. It had a few black-screened windows that revealed nothing of the inside. There was a porch before the front entrance, which was a rickety screen door. The roof was tin and rusty, and there were boxes stacked up high on one side of the building. On the other side was a small, fenced-in area with a door leading into the building and a grill sitting outside. The grill seemed rusty, old, and unused.

Casey and Prairiemon came upon the building and saw the faded sign hanging beside the door that read "Diner."

"Huh," Casey shrugged.

"A diner!" Prairiemon said happily. "Finally we can eat something that's not just fruit!"

"Yeah, I guess," Casey replied with a smile. He hated to admit it, but he was sick of the same old food, and he would love to sit down at a table or booth and order from a menu. It was almost like being back home. "Let's go in."

They walked up the three steps leading to the small porch, which was originally robin's egg blue but had become faded and grimy, seemingly left to itself for some time now. Casey also noted with distaste the green scum growing at the bottom of the house's wood siding, where it met the cinder blocks holding the building up as a foundation. The boards beneath their feet creaked with aged protest as they slowly pulled open the door.

They walked inside to a stuffy but cool atmosphere. The restaurant was busy, with nearly half the tables occupied by small groups of various Digimon, eating various foods and chatting. There was a slight din; most tables kept their conversations quiet, but several tables had patrons chatting loudly, or a table would erupt in raucous laughter.

"What do you think, Prairiemon?" Casey asked, looking uncertainly at the grimy, dirty conditions of the place.

Before his partner could respond, however, a small yellow Digimon sidled up to them. "Table for two?"

"Yes, please," Casey shrugged, eyeing the newcomer.

He was short and squat, and his skin was entirely yellow. He did not have legs, simply a rounded body, and he bounced along to show Casey and Prairiemon to their seats. In addition, he did not have arms, but instead had two long tentacles or vines that served the same purpose. A similar appendage sprouted from his rear, serving as a curly tail. His face was composed of a wide gaping mouth that split open nearly halfway down his body to reveal sparse, sharp teeth and a red, lolling tongue, and above this he had squinting, red eyes. There were red markings above his eyes, and finally, he had a crest like a semicircle sun of petals that were red with blue tips.

Casey and Prairiemon sat at the indicated table and the Digimon placed a menu before each of them.

"I'm Veggiemon," he said, "and your server will be right with you."

He bounced away and Casey and Prairiemon looked at each other and shrugged. They both scanned the menu items with distaste, but their hunger and craving for something new overrode their misgivings.

In a moment, their server arrived. They were both busy looking at their menus, and the server was busy rifling through the complicated orders he'd just taken on his notepad. He spoke before looking at them in a harried, exhausted voice.

"Good afternoon, I'll be your server. Can I get you anything to drink?"

Both Casey and Prairiemon jumped at the voice and let their menus fall, staring at their waiter.

"Adam?"

Adam jumped at the sound of their voices as well, and the three of them stared unbelievingly at each other.

"Casey? Prairiemon? What are you guys doing here?"

"We could ask you the same thing," Casey retorted. "Are you . . . working here? How did that happen?"

Adam sighed. "It's a long story."

At that moment, Kunemon scuttled passed, a tray of drinks mounted precariously along his back.

"You and Kunemon are employees here?" Prairiemon wondered incredulously.

"Wait, where are the others?" Casey asked. "Becca, Meggy, Otamamon, Rabbitmon – where are they?"

Adam looked down at the ground. "Guys, I can't really take a break. It's during the lunch rush and if I get caught slacking off I'll get in trouble."

Casey and Prairiemon stared at him in disbelief.

"I'll just bring you guys some waters," Adam muttered quickly, and ran back toward the kitchen area. Kunemon scuttled after him, carrying a now empty tray, and again didn't notice them sitting there.

"What was that about?" Casey wondered aloud.

Prairiemon shrugged. "Why would Adam be working in a place like this?"

"Or at all," Casey frowned. "He's supposed to be back in the desert with the girls. I wonder what happened."

He sighed. Rainey had run off and he himself had left Cameron, and now their group of six had become three separate pairs, but he'd always known that they could safely return to the six waiting for them in the desert. Now that seemed not to be the case, with Adam and Kunemon here and Becca, Meggy, Rabbitmon, and Otamamon apparently some unknown elsewhere.

Adam returned several minutes later, carrying two grimy glasses of water. He set them down on the table and walked away again, avoiding the gaze of both Casey and Prairiemon. Kunemon scuttled forth again, and on his way back, Casey hailed him.

"Casey! Prairiemon!" Kunemon exclaimed happily. "What brings you here?"

"Lunch," Prairiemon replied simply.

"We're just trying to figure out what _you _two are doing here," Casey added.

Kunemon tapped his numerous needle feet on the ground anxiously. "I really don't have adequate time to tell you."

"Wait," Casey said, halting Kunemon's attempted escape. "Adam's avoiding talking to us, and now you are too, and I'm not going to put up with that."

Kunemon began again to head toward the kitchen area. "I'll hail you when we get a break."

Casey and Prairiemon sat there, eying the other patrons' dishes hungrily. Adam and Kunemon rushed about, taking orders, bringing people food, cleaning tables. They seemed to be the only two employees on the floor for the rush hour, which seemed almost endless. Just when a table would be cleared, a new table would be taken by a new party. And all the while, Casey and Prairiemon's table was avoided like a disease.

It wasn't a rare occurrence to hear the smash of dishes and silverware falling to the floor. Plates were broken and food was scattered, and then a severely angry voice would begin screaming and threatening Adam and Kunemon. This was all out of Casey's sight, and he couldn't quite catch the words that were being said, but he shook his head at his friend's plight.

Casey, ignoring his stomach's angry moans, was wondering if he should try to calm down whoever was yelling so fervently at Adam, and he noticed that the restaurant had thinned of customers so that only a few other tables were occupied. Adam stumbled into view, followed by Kunemon.

"Please, Mr. Digitamamon, if I could just take a quick break to rest –"

"All right!" the voice roared, louder and angrier than ever. "You have five minutes! Five minutes _exactly!_ If you're not back on the floor by then I'm subtracting from your pay for laziness!"

Adam and Kunemon slumped visibly. They turned and began to walk out the front door. Casey and Prairiemon got up and rushed after them. Casey glanced around to see the source of the yelling – Digitamamon – but he must've gone into the kitchen because the only ones visible in the restaurant were the other patrons.

Adam was around the side of the restaurant, sitting despondently on one of the numerous boxes which probably held ingredients. His head was in his hands, and he looked positively defeated. Kunemon was slumped to one side, resting his upper body on the same box, and looked just as exhausted as Adam.

"What's going on?" Casey asked gently.

Adam stirred and looked up slowly. "This is horrible."

"I know," Casey sighed, and sat beside Adam on another box. Prairiemon sat beside Casey. "Just tell us what happened. Why aren't you back in the desert? Where are the girls? How did you end up working here?"

Adam took a deep breath. "Well, we waited several days after you guys left, but we started running out of food rations, so we made the decision that we would be more useful travelling with you guys instead of waiting for Blake. We left and tried to find your trail, but we kept getting lost. Meggy and Becca got into an argument, and we split up, and that's the last I saw of Meggy."

Casey sighed. This was not shaping up well.

"So Becca and I came to this place," Adam continued. "We were tired and hungry and sick of the same old food, and this place was like a beacon of hope. But when we ate here, the manager, Digitamamon, said that we couldn't pay. We tried to give him some of the money we had in our pockets, but he didn't recognize it. He said he only took DigiDollars, which of course we had no idea what those were, and that we owed him for our meals. He said that we would have to work in the kitchen to pay off our debt. I didn't want Becca to wait around, so I told her that she would be able to help by finding you guys. She and Otamamon left, and Kunemon and I have been here . . . weeks, I guess."

"You ate so much that you've had to work for weeks to pay it off?" Prairiemon asked, shocked.

"No," Adam replied. "It should only have taken a day to pay off our meals, maybe a day and a half, with Kunemon and I working together, but . . . well, Digitamamon and Veggiemon run this place, and they didn't have any other employees, and so Kunemon and I were left doing everything. We had to take orders, cook orders, take orders out, clear tables, clean dishes . . . everything. And I'd never done it, so I made some mistakes. I dropped a dish and it broke, and Digitamamon said he would add it to my tab. Then I messed up an order. Digitamamon said that those ingredients had been wasted and that he would add those to my bill too. Then when I'm not fast enough, he says I'm being lazy, and adds it to my bill. Anything I do wrong, it gets added to my bill. And even when something goes wrong, I get blamed for it. Like the other night, one of the customers dropped a glass and it broke. I wasn't even nearby at the time, neither was Kunemon, but Digitamamon still took it out of our bill. I think he has me working here for the next year by now, maybe longer. Something always seems to be going wrong and I'm always blamed for it."

Casey and Prairiemon sat in silence a moment, soaking it all in.

"That's horrible!" Prairiemon said.

"He doesn't have any right to treat you like that!" Casey added angrily.

"I know," Adam sighed, "but what am I supposed to do? We really did owe him for the food, and now I'm stuck here."

"We're doing our best," Kunemon interjected, "but even if we do well and avoid mistakes, something inevitably goes wrong that messes it up for us."

Casey frowned. This was a major problem in the midst of an even bigger problem.

"Look, I need to go get back to work," Adam sighed, rising painfully to his aching feet. "You guys haven't eaten, there's some stuff in these boxes. Try not to take too much from any one specific box, that way Digitamamon won't notice it."

With that, Adam and Kunemon trudged back to their labor. After the screen door slammed behind them, Casey and Prairiemon heard Digitamamon begin yelling yet again.

"Where have you been? I've been waiting!"

"I was on break," was Adam's feeble response.

"Yes, and even though we have hungry customers, I'm good enough to give you a break, and how do you repay me? You disappear!"

"Disappear? I was gone for less than four minutes!"

"You've been slacking off! Now our customers are angry and they might not even buy anything! I'm adding this to your bill!"

Casey and Prairiemon listened for the response that did not come. They could just picture Adam and Kunemon sagging in exhausted submission to yet another absurd reason to keep them here.

Casey shook his head in frustration. "This is ridiculous. They're being treated like slaves."

"At this rate, they'll be here forever," Prairiemon observed.

They sat outside for some time, picking at the uncooked food in the boxes. Finally, Casey and Prairiemon devised a plan. They rose and reentered the restaurant.

Veggiemon greeted them with confusion, recognizing them from only a few hours before. " . . . Table for two?"

"No," Casey replied with confidence. "We'd like to speak to the manager."

Veggiemon was extremely surprised by this. "O – Of course. One moment, please!" He bounced off toward the kitchen area. In a moment, he bounced back out, and Casey and Prairiemon both lurched at Digitamamon's appearance.

There wasn't much to him, really. He was fairly large, nearly Casey's height. He stood upon two thick, muscular legs that were green and scaly and sported sharp pink claws. These legs led into his peculiar body: An egg. Digitamamon was an egg. A giant egg, in fact, walking upright on his dinosaur legs. The only other feature to him was that the egg shell had a large, jagged hole in the upper half, through which two beady yellow eyes peered at Casey and Prairiemon with curious interest.

"Yes, hello," Digitamamon called as he approached. "How may I help you?"

"Actually, we're here to help you," Casey began. "You see, Adam and Kunemon, the guys you have working for you, they're our friends. We heard they owe you a debt and we'd like to start working with you to help pay it off quicker."

Digitamamon's eyes narrowed and he surveyed them skeptically. "You want to help them? Why?"

"Because he's my friend," Casey responded simply.

"Yes, yes, you said that already," Digitamamon continued. "But why would you waste your time working for someone else's gain?"

Casey and Prairiemon exchanged a glance. "Why does it matter?"

Digitamamon surveyed Casey and Prairiemon through squinting eyes for several more seconds before finally releasing a short exhalation of irritation. He spoke finally with great reluctance. "I don't suppose there's any reason you can't help. Follow me."

He took the two of them to the kitchen, a large room that was just as grimy as the rest of the place, but was stocked with numerous appliances that were capable of mass-producing meals; there they found Adam hard at work, sweating over a pan of vegetables he was sautéing as he attempted with his other hand to place drinks on a tray on Kunemon's back. Adam finished putting the drinks precariously on the teetering tray held by Kunemon and Kunemon scuttled past Digitamamon, Casey, and Prairiemon and out into the restaurant. Adam noticed them standing there and faltered.

"What are you guys doing here?"

"They've come to help work off your debt," Digitamamon replied with an undisguised sneer.

Adam stared at them in disbelief as Digitamamon sulked away. "Are you kidding me? What do you guys think you're doing?"

"We decided that you needed help," Prairiemon responded.

Casey added, "We know that Digitamamon is adding time to your debt for everything you do and half the things you don't, so we figured if we doubled the workforce he wouldn't be able to punish you fast enough."

Adam continued to stare at them. "You guys, that's really great, but you're just wasting your time. Yeah, maybe this will mean I can actually pay back time quicker than I have it added, but this also means that you guys are wasting your time here with me instead of going out and finding the others."

Casey frowned. "True," he sighed, "but you're one of us just like any of them, and if we're all going to get back together as a group, that means we have to get you out of this place sooner than later."

"Besides, we'd like some company while we look for the others," Prairiemon smiled.

Adam sighed and smiled despite himself. He turned back to his vegetables.

Casey surveyed the room. There were orders being cooked, orders needing to be cooked, orders needing to be taken, tables needing to be checked, tables needing to be cleaned, dishes needing to be cleaned . . . everywhere he looked, Casey saw at least two jobs that needed to be done. He secretly had a moment of an extreme feeling of sinking; there was far too much to do, even for the four of them. However, he gritted his teeth, stepped forward, and set to work.  
As Adam cooked and Kunemon handled drinks and table cleaning, Prairiemon set about cleaning dishes as Casey took to the floor. The four of them rushed back and forth, sweating and stressed, barely acknowledging each other as they passed each other on the way from one duty to the next.

Casey came into the kitchen at one point and saw Adam placing food onto a plate, ready to set it in the window to be sent to its table. At the same time, Prairiemon was carrying a stack of plates from the wash to their spot to be used for other dishes. Casey saw it before it happened, but there was nothing he could do.

In their mutual frenzy, both were moving as quickly as they could. Prairiemon couldn't see past the tower of plates he was carrying, and Adam had no idea as he spun around, meal in hand, that Prairiemon was walking behind him. They collided, and the tower of plates hit the ground alongside the freshly completed meal, releasing a deafening crash. Casey winced and slapped his forehead in anguish.

Digitamamon came sliding into view, the eager malice shining in his eyes. "What's this I see?" he roared indignantly. "How could you break all of these plates?"

Adam looked on the verge of tears. He answered meekly, "It was an accident."

But Digitamamon was too busy noticing the meal on the ground to hear the excuse. "You not only broke plates, but you wasted a meal? Now we have to buy new plates, replace those wasted ingredients, _and _hope our customer, who will now be waiting extra time for their meal, bothers to come back. _This is getting added to your tab!_"

Digitamamon stormed off to explain to the customer, and Adam fell limply against the side of the stove. Casey approached him tentatively, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Hey, it's all right, it was an accident. It's no big deal."

"No!" Adam cried. "It is a big deal! This always happens. It doesn't matter what I'm doing, I _always_ find a way to screw it up! Yeah, Digitamamon's unfair to me, but even if he didn't blame me for stuff I didn't do I'd still be here forever because I'm such a screw up! And now you're here and you're going to be stuck here, too, and I just can't seem to get it right!"

Casey stared helplessly. A moment passed before he finally said, "The only thing we can do to fix this mistake is to fix it. No use crying over spilled milk." And he got back to work.

They all did. The day continued, and while certainly not every moment of the day was as hectic as certain times, the workload never seemed to lessen enough to give them any significant moment of rest. Casey watched with frustration as Adam continued to make mistakes, blame himself, and set himself up to be even more likely to make another mistake. Casey knew that if it had been a half hour without Digitamamon's outraged scream that it was certainly right around the corner, and it was soon apparent that no matter how hard they worked and no matter how much progress they made, they would truly never pay off the debt.

-

Casey stared despondently at the night sky. He ached all over. _All over._

"I hurt in places I didn't know I could hurt," Casey muttered weakly.

Prairiemon groaned a feeble response.

They were sprawled on the ground behind the diner after a day of excruciatingly relentless work. Adam and Kunemon were already sound asleep, and Casey and Prairiemon were quickly rushing to join him.

Casey stirred. "Prairiemon, did you hear something?"

"Yeah," Prairiemon replied slowly, as they both sat up.

They listened several more moments. There was a sound of shuffling; something was poking around, giggling.

Casey and Prairiemon exchanged a glance and rose as silently as they could. They crept to the side of the diner, peering around, across the tables covered with boxes full of ingredients.

There, at the front corner of the diner, poking through the boxes, was a humanoid shape. Neither Casey nor Prairiemon could make out many features, but they could tell that it was a small, humanoid figure with two large, triangular ears atop its head. As they watched, the figure removed the cinderblock beneath the short leg of one of the tables. It began to topple back and forth, and the box of ingredients scooted toward the end of the table forebodingly.

"Hey!" Casey cried.

The figure jerked at the sudden noise, and instantly leapt into the darkness and disappeared from view.

"Wait a second!" Prairiemon called.

At that moment, the box full of food supplies toppled to the ground with a devastating crash, sending the food flying everywhere. Large pieces of fruit smashed on the ground with a finality like a nail in the coffin.

"Let's go get him!" Casey grunted angrily, and the two of them ran off after the figure.

"Where'd he go?" Prairiemon wondered aloud as they sped after the mysterious figure.

"It's too dark," Casey growled, ruing the moonless night. "Where'd he go?"

They continued running in the direction the figure had disappeared until they found themselves on the bank of the lake. Casey clenched and unclenched his fists, grinding his teeth. "He got away."

-

Casey was running about, seemingly more frantically than the day before.

They were about an hour into the morning at the diner, and the place was full of hungry, impatient customers. Casey was already sweating and aching and still had an entire day of work ahead of him.

He and Prairiemon had returned to the diner after their futile attempt to catch the perpetrator. The fruit was still smashed and Casey knew there was no fixing it. He grabbed the forsaken cinderblock and returned it to its place and went back to sleep with the intention of telling Digitamamon what had happened in the morning. However, when he was abruptly awoken by Veggiemon, he was shuffled into the diner, past the fruit without a comment, and to the work.

Casey winced at the sound of another plate falling to the floor. He'd been expecting it, but still hoping against hope that it would not come. In moments, Digitamamon's anger rose above the din of the crowded diner.

He shouted the norm, citing Adam's incompetence, that this would have to be paid for, and that it was being added to his tab. Casey sighed, gave Digitamamon a few seconds to slink away, and then went to console his friend.

Adam was slumped in familiar fashion against the stove, looking again like he was on the verge of tears. Casey went to him.

"I can't do anything right," he muttered, barely audible.

"Adam, just . . . get back on the horse," Casey sighed, feeling like he'd said it a hundred times.

"I'm sorry," Adam replied. "I just can't believe I keep messing up! More time on my bill after what happened this morning."

Casey started. "This morning?"

"Yeah," Adam continued. "Digitamamon woke me up all angry this morning. Some fruit fell over last night and it was all ruined and he said he had to pay for it and it was getting added to my tab. Nothing's ever gonna go right!"

"Wait a second," Casey halted him, holding up his hand. "What happened?"

"I dunno, something happened to this big box of fruit and I got blamed for it."

Casey stood there for a moment in disbelief, taking in this new bit of information.

"What's wrong?" Adam asked quizzically.

"Before Prairiemon and I got to sleep last night, we heard something," explained Casey. "We got up and saw somebody messing with the table where those ingredients were. He made the table all wobbly and caused that fruit to fall off. We chased him and tried to catch him but he disappeared."

Adam slumped even more. "Well that's just great."

"We can't let him get away with this," Casey grumbled as Prairiemon walked tiredly to the two of them, curious at his partner's angry expression.

"What can we do?" Adam replied weakly. "Digitamamon's right: Someone's gotta pay for it. If you'd caught him, maybe . . . But as it is . . ."

"No," Casey fumed. "No, it's not like that, not this time. I won't stand for this anymore. This is ridiculous!" He turned and stormed out, followed by Prairiemon.

"Wait!" Adam called. "What are you doing?" But Casey didn't turn. Adam looked frantically this way and that before rushing after him.

He followed Casey all the way out to the fenced in side of the restaurant. Kunemon, noticing Casey's storm from the kitchen and across the restaurant, entered the side yard closely after Adam. The four of them stood before Digitamamon, who was standing out there with Veggiemon, tinkering with the grill.

Digitamamon noticed them and turned to look at them with a rage that seemed to radiate from him. "_What _do you think you're _doing?!_"

"Listen up," Casey began forcefully.

"_Get back in the kitchen!_" Digitamamon roared.

"Wait a second!" Casey responded. "Adam told me that you punished him this morning for that ruined fruit. Well, Prairiemon and I saw someone poking around back there last night and they ruined the fruit. No way Adam should be blamed for that!"

Digitamamon, eyes narrowed, took a step closer, looking Casey in the eye, and drew himself up to his full stature. "I don't care. It doesn't matter _who _did it, _someone_ has to pay for it!"

Casey clenched his jaw. "Not Adam! That's so stupid, it's not his fault!"

Digitamamon somehow found a way to narrow his eyes even more. "I'm done discussing this. Get back to work."

Casey raised his chin in defiance. "No."

"Get. Back. In. The. Kitchen."

"No!"

"_Now!_"

"_No!_"

Digitamamon was furious. He reared back and slammed his body into Casey, landing his steel-hard eggshell right into Casey's stomach. Casey coughed as the breath was forced from him and he fell back.

"Hey, watch it!" Prairiemon cried, rushing to his partner's side.

"You want a piece of me, too?" Digitamamon growled.

"You can't push him around like that!"

"You want to be pushed around, too?" Veggiemon cackled. "Stink Jet!"

He opened his maw and released a spray of vile green smog that shot in a stream toward Prairiemon.

"Hey, don't attack my friend!" Adam yelled.

"Electro Thread!" Kunemon called, firing a string of dancing electricity at Veggiemon. It cut through the gas and stung Veggiemon, who yelped in shock.

"That does it," Veggiemon growled. "Sharp Leek!" He launched one of his tentacle arms toward Adam and Kunemon. In the same moment, Digitamamon launched himself to body slam Casey again. Kunemon and Prairiemon rushed to intercept the attacks as the boys' Digivices began to glow.

"Prairiemon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Leomon!"

"Kunemon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Kuwagamon!"

Veggiemon's leek bounced harmlessly off of Kuwagamon's armored head, and Leomon rushed between Casey and Digitamamon, crossing his arms. Digitamamon ran into it and Leomon pushed him back.

"You Digivolved?" Digitamamon observed with mild interest. "That's impressive. But it's no use."

"We'll see," Leomon challenged.

Veggiemon smirked at Kuwagamon, but he visibly cowered before the much larger Digimon. "Stink Jet!" He fired another stream of rank steam at Kuwagamon, but Kuwagamon didn't react to the feeble blow. Instead, Kuwagamon swung his massive head, catching Veggiemon on one of his pincers and tossing him into the air. Veggiemon cried out as he flew in a wide arc and slammed into the fence encircling the yard.

"Don't attack my employees!" Digitamamon roared. "Nightmare Syndrome!"

His eyes disappeared. From the dark void, a stream of dark energy poured forth in a ray that streaked toward Kuwagamon. It shot into him and Kuwagamon cried out as the phantasmal shade passed through him. It streaked back into Digitamamon's open shell and his yellow eyes reappeared.

Meanwhile, Kuwagamon turned a gray, discolored shade as the phantasm passed through him. He cried out for several seconds before glowing and shrinking back into Kunemon form.

"Kunemon!" Adam cried out, rushing toward him and picking him up. "Are you okay?"

"Watch out, Leomon," Kunemon shuddered weakly. "That attack is very powerful!"

"Don't worry! Fist of the Beast King!" Leomon's fist glowed with burning fire and punched forward, sending the fiery, lion-shaped attack toward Digitamamon. He launched two more in succession.

The attacks exploded on Digitamamon's shell, obscuring him in fire. When it dissipated, Digitamamon was standing there, unharmed. The opening in his shell was gone, leaving a pure, white shell. A crack appeared that opened instantly to reveal the hole in the shell once more. The yellow eyes glared from within.

"That's funny," Digitamamon sneered. "Nice try. What do you think a Champion level Digimon like you can do against me?"

"Wait a second," Casey said, thinking aloud. "He's not a Champion Digimon?"

"Oh, no," Adam muttered ominously. He thought about Etemon, Datamon, Piximon, SkullGreymon, and Triceramon, how powerful they'd been, how amazingly helpless their Champion level Digimon had been.

"It doesn't matter," Casey said through gritted teeth. "We can beat this guy!"

"Right!" Leomon nodded. He drew his sword and rushed toward Digitamamon.

"Nightmare Syndrome!" Digitamamon called again. The attack spewed forth, but Leomon sidestepped and continued at him with his sword drawn. Digitamamon's shell closed again, and Leomon brought his sword to bear. He slashed it forward and it screamed as it struck Digitamamon. Leomon's momentum carried him several more steps beyond.

Digitamamon's shell reopened, revealing him to be again unharmed. "It's useless!" Digitamamon crowed. "You're too weak! Nightmare Syndrome!"

Leomon's footing was unsure, and he dodged just a bit too late. The attack grazed Leomon, and he cried out in pain as it shot through his arm. The arm became discolored and Leomon landed before Casey and fell painfully to one knee.

"Leomon!" Casey cried out.

"Casey!" Adam called out. "You can do it!"

Suddenly, Casey heard the sound of Adam choking and gagging. Kunemon cried out, "Adam!"

Casey flipped around to find Adam, caught in Veggiemon's grasp. He'd gotten up quietly from the fence and snuck around behind the boys as they focused on Digitamamon. He'd snatched Adam in his tentacles and held him there, wrapped in them, and began to squeeze.

"Casey!" Adam choked. "Just get out of here!"

"No way!" Casey replied gruffly.

"Casey, I'm – really glad you – helped me out, but – you can't get yourself – in trouble – for me." He could barely finish the strained sentence as Veggiemon's grip began to strangle the air out of him even more.

"Shut up!" Casey cried. "Don't be ridiculous! If you're in trouble, it's my business too! We're a team! I'll help you get out of this. You're my friend!"

At that moment, Casey's Crest began glowing a shining blue. "What's going on?" he asked, as the light intensified, washing over the area.

"Leomon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Panjamon!"

"Whoa!" Casey breathed in awe. "Leomon Digivolved!"

Leomon's basic form had not changed, but his appearance certainly had. The color of his fur had changed from a healthy brown to a light blue, almost white sheen. He had the same light blue colored armor plates on his upper leg and surrounding his calves, with dark blue fur surrounding the bottom of the armor plates on his lower legs. The same dark blue material covered from his wrist to his upper forearm, and billowed behind him in the form of a cape that looked light as a cloud. Finally, he held a long staff with a pointed end. The staff was as tall as he was and the upper fourth of it was an enormous heptagonal shape with a snowflake design.

Digitamamon's eyes widened with a momentary concern. "You . . . Digivolved again, huh?"

"That's right," Panjamon replied. "Now I'm Panjamon. I'm much stronger."

"Fat chance!" Digitamamon snorted. "Nightmare Syndrome!"

The black phantom substance shot forward toward Panjamon, but Panjamon swung his mighty staff and dispelled the dark attack. He reared his fist back, bristling with blue-white energy, and punched it forward, screaming, "Ice Beast Fist!" A lion-shaped ball of white energy shot toward Digitamamon, slamming into him and knocking him back on his back with a cry. Panjamon jumped into the air in the same motion, spinning his staff. As it spun, glowing blue energy accumulated on the snowflake emblem. He suddenly held the staff before him and shouted, "Blizzard Fury!" The blue energy shot forward and engulfed Digitamamon. After the attack dissipated, they saw Digitamamon lying there, completely frozen.

Panjamon landed and turned, glaring at Veggiemon. Veggiemon whimpered, dropped Adam, and hopped quickly out of view. Casey ran toward Adam. "Are you all right buddy?"

"Yeah," Adam coughed, excitedly gasping the air he felt he hadn't had for hours.

Panjamon glowed and shrank, revealing the tiny, spherical Zerimon. Assured of Adam's health, Casey ran to his Digimon and swept him into his arms. "Thanks, Zerimon!"

"No problem," Zerimon chuckled, weak from the energy expenditure.

"I'm so proud of you!" Casey beamed. "You Digivolved to the Ultimate level!"

Zerimon smiled and closed his eyes to rest. Casey returned to Adam's side. Adam was now sitting up, Kunemon tending to him, making sure he was all right. Adam dragged himself to his feet.

Casey slapped him on the back. "Are you ready to finally get out of here?"

Adam smiled and laughed tiredly. "You know, after working here so hard for so long, I can hardly believe I'm about to leave this place behind."

Casey stared at him skeptically. "Do you . . . want a minute?"

Adam laughed and looked at him coyly. "Not a chance!"

They hopped the fence and got out of there.

After a few minutes of walking, Adam looked back and smiled to himself; the diner was no longer visible.

"I'm glad to get that behind me."

"Indeed," agreed Kunemon.

"I'm just glad to get you out of there," Casey said.

"So . . . I've been wondering . . ." Adam began.

"Yeah?"

" . . . Where's . . . Rainey?"

Casey stopped walking. He clenched his fist and stared down at the ground.

Adam looked back concernedly. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to –"

"No," Casey interjected. "Rainey . . . he's gone."

A pause. "What? Where?"

Casey felt a sob threatening to rise out of his throat. "Just . . . gone."

Adam pursed his lips in thought. "Well we've gotta find him."

"Yeah."

"I'm sure that you were looking for Rainey when you stumbled upon me," Adam continued. "Thanks. For working so hard for me, when your brother is out there somewhere."

Casey closed his eyes and looked away. "Yeah. No problem. You're my friend, of course I helped you."

Adam smiled. "Well thanks. It really means a lot to me."

Casey nodded.

"Come on," Adam said. "Let's go. Together. Let's go find your brother!"

-

A/N: If you decide to search the internet to learn more about the Digimon featured in my story, to get a better visual image, or to attempt to understand my somewhat convoluted Digivolution lines, Panjamon is the original Japanese name for the character IceLeomon. I retained the original in an attempt to provide variety and to avoid some confusion later with other Leomon-esque characters.


	26. Imagine That

Begun 12:36am on Thursday, October 16, 2008

Finished 2:26am on Sunday, March 15, 2009

-

A/N: Apologies on the delay. It is always my intent and hope that I produce at least one chapter a month (and ideally a chapter weekly), but my busy schedule doesn't yield much free time and as such this story continues at a snail's pace. However, I assure you that I am committed to finishing this story and hopefully speeding up the pace of my updates with some degree of permanence, so just hang in there, be sure to review, and thanks to you all for continuing to support me.

-

**Previously in Digimon: Digital Monsters**

This is Casey speaking. Prairiemon and I were searching for my brother when we stumbled upon a diner along the lakefront. We found Adam and Kunemon working, being driven like slaves by Veggiemon and the diner's owner, Digitamamon. We tried to help out, but when Digitamamon blamed Adam for something he didn't do, I couldn't stand it anymore. We fought against Digitamamon and my Crest activated, allowing Leomon to Digivolve to Panjamon! We defeated Digitamamon and Veggiemon and went on to find the other DigiDestined.

-

**CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX**

**Imagine That**

Impmon's footsteps were quiet, making barely any noise. He lurked along the dark pass, the cliff-like rock faces rising up on either side of him.

He'd left Rainey asleep, as he usually did. He would wait for the boy to be deep asleep and rush off to do his master's bidding. Earlier that very evening, he'd sabotaged the ingredients in Digitamamon's diner. Actually, one of the brats had chased him, but he'd easily avoided detection in the darkness of the night.

Now he'd come here, his second of two stops on his evening of mischief.

"Vademon?" he called into the darkness. He knew this was where Vademon stayed, when he hung around these parts.

"Ah, Impmon," came a voice from the shadows. Vademon strode forward, coming into the sparse light of the moon shining down into the pass.

Vademon was tall, as tall as one of the DigiDestined children. He was extremely thin and flesh colored. Rather than legs, his lower body was ten tentacles, all together and splayed out at the bottoms to support him. He had two thin, weak-looking arms with three large fingers with long nails. He held a ray gun in his right hand, which consisted of two spherical segments ending in an antenna-like firing apparatus. His head was long, thin. His giant eyes were yellow, and his pupils were thin, black, vertical slits. He had flaps of skin beneath his eyes. Finally, the upper fourth of his body and the predominant portion of his body was a swollen, pink brain. There were tubes leading from the brain to his skull beneath the brain.

"What brings you here this evening?" Vademon questioned.

"Official business," Impmon replied curtly, "for Lord Myotismon."

"Ah!" Vademon replied happily, stowing his ray gun and tapping his fingers together in eager anticipation. Lord Myotismon didn't call on Vademon's services very often, but when he did it always meant a healthy payoff. "What is it you'd have me do?"

"Just be on the lookout," Impmon replied calmly. "There are children running around. _Human _children. They've got Digimon partners, but they can't evolve past Champion level. If you see one or any of them, do whatever you can to hold them here as long as possible. If you do, Lord Myotismon will reward you very handsomely."

"Of course!" Vademon replied greedily. "I'll do whatever I can to help Lord Myotismon in his cause!"

"Good," Impmon replied. "Lord Myotismon thanks you for your assistance."

Impmon disappeared into the dead blackness of the night, returning to his current project. Vademon smiled happily. Certainly, he would easily outsmart some foolish child, and soon, Lord Myotismon would provide a wonderful award.

-

Cameron walked along the pass, DemiDevimon perched comfortably atop his head. They'd been walking, seemingly aimlessly, for days.

They'd crossed the lake with Casey over half a week ago, at least. Casey had returned to retrieve his brother, and Cameron had waited for him for some time. He'd actually almost gone on his way then and there, but he figured he'd give Casey the courtesy of waiting for some time. Of course, after a few hours of waiting, Cameron decided that something had gone awry, and decided to proceed on his own. Despite DemiDevimon's protests, Cameron decided to continue his journey on his own.

DemiDevimon pressed Cameron, suggesting he go back and help Casey with whatever may have happened.

"What if something's wrong?"

"What if they got attacked?"

"What if they need our help?"

But no matter what DemiDevimon said, Cameron could not be swayed. "They'll be fine" was the reply, and he continued on his endless journey to . . . wherever it was he thought he was going.

Cameron continued on his journey, always searching for some new bit of knowledge, something else he could learn. DemiDevimon wasn't sure if Cameron actually wanted to gain knowledge to find a way for them all to get back to their own world, or to help find out what happened to Blake. Cameron seemed more interested in learning solely for learning's sake.

Now they were walking along a pass surrounded on both sides by tall walls of rock. Suddenly a voice called out to them.

"Why hello there!"

Cameron stopped, he and DemiDevimon looking around for the source of the voice. A strange looking Digimon appeared from a nearby crevasse.

"My name is Vademon," he introduced himself. "Who might you be?"

"My name is Cameron, and this is my partner, DemiDevimon."

"And what brings you to these parts?"

"Researching the Digital World," Cameron replied.

"What do you mean by that?" Vademon asked curiously.

"DemiDevimon and I are travelling around the Digital World, studying what we can, learning what we can," Cameron explained. "Everything is research, and I'm hoping someday soon to come across something monumental."

"Monumental?" Vademon repeated with growing interest.

Cameron nodded. "For instance, when we were in the desert, we found a cave of runes that brought us so much information about the Digital World." Cameron thought back to that cave, originally hidden by Rainey's Crest of Hope. It was there he'd found his laptop, there he'd discovered that the Digital World was a shadow of the Real World, there that they'd gotten that fateful distress call from Datamon . . .

"Ah, so you are a scientist of sorts?" Vademon concluded.

"Yes, most definitely."

Vademon smiled happily. "Why, I, too, consider myself a Digimon of higher knowledge. In fact, I discovered a rift here in this very area, and I use it as my secret, personal home."

Cameron perked slightly at this, remembering the curious nature of Piximon's lush home, invisible and protected in the middle of the vast, dry desert of Server. Perhaps this was similar; Cameron had been aching to learn more about the nature of this phenomenon, but they'd been too busy in training.

Vademon noticed that he'd hit a chord with Cameron, and pressed on. "In fact, I compile knowledge from all over Server. I have a library of books and journals that I've found or written based on my discoveries. I keep the library in my own little dimension. I could show it to you, if you'd like."

Cameron had only to process Vademon's words before he was nodding vigorously. "Of _course _I'd like to see your library! That would definitely help me learn a ton more about the Digital World in no time!"

Vademon's smile widened, looking rather out of place on his odd form. "I'm so very happy that you share such excitement. I can't remember if I've ever found a being who I felt could truly share with me in my love of knowledge and research, but the moment I saw you, I knew it, and what you've been saying truly proves it!"

"Yes, of course!" Cameron replied excitedly, barely registering Vademon's words in his own growing excitement. "When can we see this place?"

"Why, right now."

With one last, long, twisted smile, Vademon reached out to touch Cameron on the forehead, and the entire world went dark.

-

Cameron awoke groggily, as from a deep sleep. However, as he sat up, he knew that only moments had passed. Must have been a reaction to switching through dimensional barriers, he concluded.

He looked around. He was in a void. Everything around him was dark, pulsating nothingness. There were faint colors appearing and disappearing at random all around, without apparent rhyme or reason. There was plenty of light; he did not feel he needed to strain his eyes or that his eyes were adjusted to the darkness like they were at light, but there was no apparent light source and it was not bouncing off of anything or illuminating anything in the void. There was no ground or surface or anything, yet he felt himself sitting upon a flat surface. It wasn't visible – it wasn't there at all – and yet Cameron could sit, stand, walk without any problem, just like he could on any flat surface.

DemiDevimon was floating nearby, just coming to, looking around with confusion.

"Where are we?"

"This must be Vademon's universe," Cameron muttered. "I wonder where he is?"

Then they spotted a building. It was floating in the void, just as they were, apparently sitting on the same nonexistent surface as was supporting them.

"What do you think it is?" DemiDevimon wondered.

"I'd bet it's his library!" Cameron responded excitedly.

He stood, and DemiDevimon found his usual perch atop Cameron's shoulder. They walked forward, toward the structure. It was a squat, unimportant looking building. It was one story, very small, probably only a few rooms large. There were windows here and there, but only a dim amount of illumination seeped through them. There were no defining features to differentiate the small white structure from any other average building.

"Should we just go in?" DemiDevimon wondered aloud. Cameron answered simply by pushing open the door and entering.

They found themselves in a room lit with yellow light. There were several rows of long, gray metal bookshelves in the small, rectangular room, and they were all packed full of books. The books were all different sizes and colors, organized in a way that suggested that the owner had made several attempts to organize them but had eventually given up to the sheer overwhelming number of them.

Cameron let out an awed, "Wow!"

"There are so many," DemiDevimon muttered, more overwhelmed by the sheer number of books than by the potential learning contained within the tomes.

"I could sit here for years and only scratch the surface!" Cameron smiled, his voice a hoarse whisper of excitement. He trembled in anticipation and rushed forward. He ran up and down the aisles, scanning the different titles of the books.

"This is amazing, DemiDevimon!" Cameron laughed. "There's so much here to learn, so much that interests me, I don't even know where to start!" Cameron plopped to the ground, a plethora of books scattered about him. He grabbed one and began flipping through it excitedly, but quickly grabbed another title and began rifling through its pages.

DemiDevimon sat and watched his partner tearing through the books. Cameron would pick one up and flip through, or quickly scan a few pages, but then he'd get distracted by another book. He was like a kid in a candy store and couldn't seem to help but get distracted by all the wonderful things around him.

Personally, DemiDevimon didn't quite get it. Sure, learning new things could be interesting, but the things Cameron talked about learning were . . . absurd. DemiDevimon was interested in what some new food might taste like or which was the best path to get from here to there. Cameron was interested in the very makeup of the Digital World on its most miniscule level, which DemiDevimon quite frankly didn't even understand at all – much less feel any interest in exploring.

However, DemiDevimon smiled to see his partner enjoying himself so much. Cameron had finally settled somewhat, now sitting a bit more calmly, voraciously reading a book. Of course, only a few minutes and a few page turns later, this book was traded for another, which was soon traded for yet another. While Cameron's frenzy had been slowed, he was certainly by no means subdued.

DemiDevimon suddenly had a small realization. "Hey, whatever happened to Vademon?"

Cameron seemed not to notice, far too engrossed in his current study to do anything more than barely register the comment, but at DemiDevimon's question, a door opened from further within the building and Vademon strode quickly into the room. Cameron realized his presence and looked up from his reading.

"Ah, I see you've found my library," Vademon chortled, "and I can see you've torn into it. I suppose it's everything you'd hoped?"

"Better!" Cameron replied happily. "This is absolutely amazing! There's so much here to learn, I'm overwhelmed!"

"It does seem like you've quite a bit of reading to do," Vademon smiled, nodding slightly to the random scattering of books around Cameron.

"Yeah," Cameron replied a bit sheepishly. "There're just so many interesting books I don't even know where to start. It's like I start reading something and learning about something, and it's so interesting and I want to know more, but then I keep thinking in the back of my mind about some other book on some other subject and it keeps bugging me until I can't stand it and I just have to pick up that book and learn about that."

"Oh my," Vademon muttered. "That sounds a bit unfortunate."

Cameron shrugged. "Yeah, I guess it is kind of detrimental, but what can I do?"

"There are ways to focus one's mind," Vademon responded slowly.

Cameron perked at this slightly. "What do you mean?"

"Well," Vademon began, choosing his words very carefully, "there are many things going on in your head at any given time, but if you think about it, all you need in your head to allow you to learn is the ability to read and assimilate knowledge; the rest is just a cacophony of noise and is actually oppressive to your learning."

Cameron nodded in slow agreement. "I never thought about it that way, but it's true. If my mind weren't rushing so much, I'd be able to just focus and learn. And if I weren't getting so distracted, I'd be able to read much quicker."

"Indeed," Vademon chimed.

"But again, what can I really do about it?" Cameron shrugged.

"Allow me," Vademon responded greedily. Cameron gave him a questioning look, and he proceeded. "I have the special ability to separate your imagination from you."

Cameron and DemiDevimon jumped slightly in surprise. "R – really?" Cameron asked, a mixture of incredulous and intrigued.

"Oh, yes," Vademon smiled cordially.

"But why would Cameron want to do that?" DemiDevimon challenged aggressively.

"It's really quite simple if you think about it," Vademon continued. "You see, your imagination is important, yes, but when you're simply trying to get down to learning it actually gets in the way. It's your imagination that takes every new piece of information and makes your brain go off on a tangent with it, and it's your imagination that keeps nagging you to pick up a book you haven't yet begun. Your imagination is holding you back."

Cameron's eyes filled with a realization, a belief in Vademon's words. DemiDevimon, however, ruffled his feathers. "How does that make sense?"

"It's true," Cameron replied simply, effectively stunting DemiDevimon's angry comment.

"Can you really . . . remove my imagination," Cameron pressed, still obviously uncomfortable about the prospect.

Vademon saw Cameron's discomfort. "Oh, yes, but never fear! It's not a permanent separation – I'll remove your imagination, put it in a box, and you can learn unhindered to your heart's content. When you're done, you just come find me and I can give you back your imagination. It's a temporary separation, and it's completely safe."

Cameron mulled over the idea for only a few moments. "Okay."

"Wait!" DemiDevimon pleaded. "You can't be serious?"

Cameron replied, "I am. He said it himself, it's just a temporary thing, so there's really no risk involved at all."

"But," DemiDevimon began, lowering his voice to try to keep Vademon from overhearing, "I don't trust this guy. What if he tries to pull something funny?"

"Come on, DemiDevimon," Cameron said, rolling his eyes. "I'm pretty sure we can trust this guy, all he really cares about is knowledge for knowledge's sake. I'm the same way, and you trust me, don't you? Besides, if he tries to pull something, you'll be right here with me to protect me like you always do. There's nothing to worry about."

DemiDevimon didn't feel at all appeased, but he knew that to press the argument further would be futile.

"This will only take a moment," Vademon muttered, shuffling forward to place his hands on Cameron's temples. "Just relax."

Cameron closed his eyes. DemiDevimon watched in anxious anticipation. Several seconds passed and nothing happened, but then, Vademon began to move his hands slowly toward himself, keeping them cupped as they were around Cameron's skull. As his hands moved past Cameron's forehead, a pinkish, translucent bubble moved through as well, seemingly trapped between Vademon's hands. He continued moving his hands until the bubble was free of Cameron's head. He still held his hands in the same way, as though he were cupping something precious, and the bubble floated between his hands, mysteriously suspended and held aloft.

"There," Vademon said quietly, "all done."

Vademon moved away, down the aisle between a few bookshelves. He went to a box at the end of the shelf and opened it, carefully placing the small bubble into it. He closed it and glanced back to see if Cameron or DemiDevimon had been watching. DemiDevimon averted his gaze at just the right moment. Vademon nodded and strode quickly from the room.

"Cameron?" DemiDevimon began uncertainly, addressing his partner who had yet to move or open his eyes.

Cameron slowly opened his eyes, but he did not turn them or his head to look at his partner. He simply stared straight ahead, and DemiDevimon saw that his eyes looked blank, like they didn't reflect the light anymore.

"Cameron, are you okay?" DemiDevimon pressed worriedly.

Cameron sat for several moments without a response. He then calmly picked up a book that he had laid on his lap before Vademon's procedure, and began to lazily read the open page. His eyes moved back and forth slowly as he read several lines, but after a minute or so DemiDevimon realized that he'd stopped reading and was simply staring blankly at the page, processing nothing.

"Cameron, what's wrong?" DemiDevimon cried, suddenly feeling like he was sick to his stomach. "I'm worried! What did he do to you?"

Cameron did not respond. DemiDevimon felt like he was sweating, and he suddenly felt very dizzy. At first he thought that he was getting sick with worry, but then he realized that he was not only feeling sick – his energy was being drained.

"Cameron!" DemiDevimon cried. "Cameron! Snap out of it!"

At that moment, DemiDevimon nearly fainted. He glowed for a moment and shrunk; the light faded to reveal that he had regressed into his In-Training form, DemiMeramon. He was now about half the size, and he was made entirely of lightly burning fire. He had two weak, nearly useless arms and a large mouth beneath bright blue eyes.

"Cameron!" he reiterated in his higher pitched, scratchy voice. "Cameron, look what's happening! What's going on?"

But Cameron wasn't responding. DemiMeramon felt completely helpless.

"Of course!" DemiMeramon moaned in sudden realization. "Without your imagination, you don't want to do anything but sit there. You don't feel energized by anything, and if you don't have any energy, I don't either! That's why I DeDigivolved!"

Cameron again remained staring blankly at the page, not responding at all.

"I have to fix this!" DemiMeramon muttered determinedly. "I'll get your imagination back!"

DemiMeramon remembered where Vademon had stashed Cameron's imagination, and he flew as quickly as he could down the aisle. He saw the box containing the bubble that was Cameron's imagination and shot toward it as fast as his tiny body would allow. At the same time, he began to feel sick – a feeling he recognized with an unhappy shudder.

"I have to hurry!" DemiMeramon growled with renewed vigor, fighting back the feeling of wooziness.

He landed on the box, which was now as big as his body, and he reached his fiery arms down to either side, barely able to grasp it. He tried to lift, but his In-Training body wasn't strong enough to lift the light box.

_No!_ DemiMeramon thought helplessly. _I can't just leave this here and let Cameron stay like this! I might not be strong enough, but I have to get this to him no matter what!_

DemiMeramon strained his entire body, feeling like he was tearing what little muscle he had. He let out a scream of pain and exertion, but the box levitated from the shelf.

_Got it!_ DemiMeramon thought gleefully. He began to carry it as fast as his little body would allow, which wasn't very fast at all. He looked from his end of the aisle to the opposite end. Just out of his sight, his partner was sitting lifelessly, and DemiMeramon was the only one who could save him, but as he stared at the long stretch of aisle before him and felt his muscles strain, he began to despair.

He shook his head vigorously and stared down at the floor as he pushed forward, watching the tiles slide past, putting the hopelessness of the situation from his mind. The only thing worth thinking about was that he needed to do this, that he had to do this. Nothing else mattered.

DemiMeramon pushed himself forward, but he began steadily dropping to the floor. He struggled to maintain his grip on the box as he drifted closer and closer to the ground. He felt sick and realized that any moment now he would DeDigivolve. He strained as hard as he could, pushing forward. He was nearly two-thirds of the way down the aisle when he could hold out no longer, and he and the box dropped with two dull thuds to the ground.

"No!" DemiMeramon cried weakly. "I won't give up!"

And with his remaining strength, DemiMeramon pushed as hard as he could. The friction of the box on the ground resisted his thrust, but he somehow found the strength, redoubled his efforts, and began sliding the box painstakingly across the floor.

He grunted, pushed, sweated, and cried down the aisle, moving by insignificant inches. His energy was continually dropping, and soon he was barely able to proceed by a centimeter at a time. But slowly, surely, full of determination, DemiMeramon pushed the box to the end of the aisle.

Just as Cameron came into view, DemiMeramon faltered. He'd been pushing for a while without any physical strength, relying only on determination and hope to propel the box forward. However, as much as he wanted, he was now literally unable to push the box any further than it was.

DemiMeramon again felt as though he was going to lose consciousness, and he glowed dully, shrinking ever so slightly.

He was now roughly in the shape of an upside-down teardrop. He was made entirely of dark gray smoke, with a wick sticking from the top of his head that burned dully. He had two small arms similar to DemiMeramon, and he had a small mouth and two round, yellow eyes making up his face. This was DemiDevimon's Baby form, Mokumon.

Mokumon would have cried out, but, as a Baby, he wasn't able to speak – only cry, gurgle, coo, or any other indiscernible sound made by babies. Mokumon glanced at his partner. Cameron was in the exact same position, staring blankly at the page before him. Mokumon's valiant struggle had gone completely unnoticed.

Mokumon felt his tiny eyes water. He no longer remembered quite why he felt so terrible, but he did. He was awash with sorrow, and he felt sick and weak too.

He began to cry.

The cry was a tiny, high-pitched wail. Had he been only slightly further away from Cameron, the cries probably would have gone completely unnoticed. However, after several seconds, Cameron slowly turned his gaze to stare lazily at Mokumon. His eyes were unfocused and almost unseeing, but he was drawn enough to Mokumon to look.

From the recesses of his memory, Cameron knew almost instinctively that this baby crying meant it wanted something. This instinct drove Cameron to rise from his seat, the book that had been sitting in his lap falling, forgotten, to the ground. Cameron slowly approached Mokumon, whose persistent cries held his attention. He trudged to Mokumon and plopped heavily into a sitting position.

Mokumon was slumped over the box, weakly sobbing. Cameron observed the unfamiliar form disinterestedly. Mokumon's sobs subsided very slightly when he realized Cameron's presence. He looked slowly to see his partner sitting there, staring at him but not really seeing him. Completely without energy, Mokumon remembered his partner and their plight. He felt himself renewed with the will and determination to save his partner yet again, but was well aware that he had only seconds before his energy was gone entirely and for good, and they were left sitting helplessly as they were now.

Mokumon moved, very slowly and painfully. He gripped the light lid of the box and lifted it, getting a hand under and then pushing with his entire body. He revealed the pink bubble inside, and weakly took Cameron's hand. Using his whole strength, Mokumon pushed forward and, with his very last ounce of energy, made one of Cameron's fingers brush the bubble.

Mokumon fell. He was literally without energy of any kind. He felt the world become fuzzy, and only barely detected that he was beginning to Digitize, to dissolve and be gone for good. He was too weak to care, and he sat there, disappearing.

However, the moment Cameron's finger had brushed his imagination, it had very slightly lent him some of itself. For just a moment, in the slightest of ways, Cameron had again regained his imagination. It wasn't much, just the slightest ounce of curiosity as to what this bubble may be. And he made contact with another finger, and another, until he was holding it with one hand. Then two. Each new touch filled him with more energy that he seemed to have lost somehow.

He slowly picked up the bubble and instinctively brought it up to his forehead. He pressed it to his forehead, and it instantly began to phase back into his skull. As it did, he realized who he was, what had been happening, and felt his energy and imagination come back to him.

He looked around, recovering from his persisting daze, and saw Mokumon lying there. A moment of thought led Cameron to conclude that this was some young form of his partner, DemiDevimon.

"DemiDevimon? Is that you?" Cameron said, his voice hoarse as though it had been unused.

Mokumon slowly opened his closed eyes and gazed weakly at his partner.

Cameron furrowed his brow, looking with sorrow at his weak partner, who was becoming fuzzy and disappearing before his eyes. He remembered that their partner Digimon drew their power from their partners with the aid of the Digivice, and realized that DemiDevimon's pathetic state was his fault.

"Oh, DemiDevimon, I'm so sorry!" Cameron cried, and he reached out, scooped the tiny Digimon into his arms, and cradled it close to him.

Mokumon smiled weakly at the warmth of Cameron's touch, feeling that he could now be deleted in peace. But instead, slowly at first, Mokumon felt a rush of energy flow into him. As Cameron held him in his arms, he suddenly felt that he would burst with energy. Suddenly, he grew into DemiMeramon again, and the energy just continued to pour into him.

"DemiMeramon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . DemiDevimon!"

Suddenly, Cameron was clutching his Rookie-Level partner to him, holding him tightly as though he would lose him.

"Cameron!" DemiDevimon sobbed happily. "You did it!"

"I'm so sorry, DemiDevimon," Cameron reiterated through a sob that shook him. He realized the mistake he'd made and the terrible consequence that had nearly come true because of it.

"It's okay," DemiDevimon replied gently. "You came back to me. That's all that matters."

Cameron looked at his partner through watery eyes with renewed fondness. "Thanks DemiDevimon. You're the best."

They sat and embraced for several seconds more before Cameron looked around. He glanced at the abandoned pile of books several feet away, and for a moment longed to return to his learning. Then he remembered Vademon and that he was behind this.

"DemiDevimon," Cameron said, holding up his Digivice, "let's get out of here!"

"My pleasure!" DemiDevimon nodded.

The Digivice glowed, and DemiDevimon closed his eyes as the energy washed over him.

"DemiDevimon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Vilemon!"

The winged Vilemon appeared. Cameron hopped on his back and they shot toward the door. "Nightmare Shocker!" Vilemon called, and a giant ball of lightning struck forward and blasted the door to smithereens. They shot through it into the dark void beyond.

"How do we get out of here?" Vilemon growled.

"I have no idea," Cameron replied with sudden helplessness.

"There's gotta be some way!"

Cameron slumped slightly. "Vademon brought us here. We probably can't get out without him."  
"There's no way he'll take us back," Vilemon muttered.

"No," Cameron agreed unhappily.

"So we'll just have to make him!" Vilemon concluded, turning to fly back toward the small structure they'd just vacated.

Vademon stood there in the smoking hole created by Vilemon's attack. "So, it seems you just couldn't leave well enough alone, is that it, brat?"

"I can't believe you did that to me!" Cameron spat back.

"It would have been fine if you'd let well enough alone," Vademon said. "You were surrounded by tomes full of invaluable knowledge with all the time in the world to study them and no imagination to distract you. You could have had everything you ever wanted, but now you'll never again get the chance!"

"That's a bunch of crap!" Cameron retorted angrily. "You tricked me and I fell for it!"

Vademon sneered. "You could have lived the rest of your life in blissful ignorance, but you threw it all away!"

"Shut up!" Cameron snapped. "Get us out of here! Take us back!"

Vademon laughed maniacally. "Why should I?"

"Take us back!" Vilemon growled forcefully.

"Or what?" Vademon laughed.

"Or else!" Vilemon roared. "Nightmare Shocker!" A bolt of lightning shot forth, slamming into Vademon. He laughed as the attack exploded onto him helplessly.

"Fool, you can't defeat me," Vademon cackled. "You're far too weak, and this is my dimension. You have no hope!"

"I'll figure something out," Cameron retorted. "Without my imagination, I had no creativity, no curiosity. Without curiosity, I had no desire to learn whatsoever, and without creativity I couldn't have done anything with the information anyway. Sure, it gets in the way sometimes, but without my imagination, I'd be nothing. I need it as much as I need anything else my brain can do, and you knew that all along! Well if you know so much, you know that I can find a way out of here too! I'm smart enough to use my imagination, and you can't stop me!"

As Cameron spoke, his Crest began to glow. The Crest of Knowledge became more and more brilliant, until the entire area was filled with a blinding purple light.

"Vilemon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Chimeramon!"

Cameron and Vademon both gasped in awe as the light faded and revealed the Digimon that now hovered where Vilemon had been.

He was enormous, easily several stories tall, and he looked like an amalgamation of various creatures. He was covered in soft white fur from the waist down, and his thighs each had several large blue stripes. His legs were powerfully muscled, and bent back like those of a dinosaur or canine. His feet were made up of giant paws that had four large purple claws sticking out from the toes. From his torso protruded four arms, two on either side. The bottom right arm was skeletal, and looked uncannily similar to that of SkullGreymon. The bottom left arm was red, and Cameron recognized it as the arm of a Kuwagamon. The top two arms were even more startling, as they were clearly those of Devimon. The tail that swayed behind him was identical to that of Monochromon, and he carried himself with two pairs of wings. The bottom two were fleshy and a bit tattered and were bright red-orange, and the top two were pure white, feathered and angelic. His torso was orange and scaly, with small blue stripes, and looked like that of a Greymon. The head fell under a helmet of sorts, from the back of which protruded a short mane of red hair. The helmet was dark gray and armored, and it covered the entire top of Chimeramon's head. He had his saurian mouth opened, revealing large teeth, and his eyes glared from either side of the helmet, red and ferocious. Finally, a large horn protruded to the sky from the helmet.

"You – you Digivolved?" Cameron breathed in awe.

"That's right," Chimeramon growled in a new, menacing voice. "I'm strong enough now to teach this guy a real lesson."

"H-how did you do that?!" Vademon cried, his confidence suddenly vanished.

Chimeramon simply let out a deep, guttural growl as a ball of white-hot mixed with pale green energy began to form in his gaping, razor-toothed maw. Cameron winced; from his perch atop Chimeramon's head, even he could feel the oppressive heat from Chimeramon's powerful attack.

With a roar that filled Vademon's universe, Chimeramon unleashed his massive energy. "Heat Viper!" The white-hot energy blasted forward, lancing toward Vademon, who found himself helpless, paralyzed by fear.

As Vademon's field of vision was enveloped by the oncoming attack, he felt his skin burn in the massive heat being released from the blast. He had a last, fleeting thought of escape, but his energy was sapped by the heat, and he could only stare helplessly as the devastating blast washed over him.

Cameron and Chimeramon stared at the few flaming remains of the building that remained in the aftermath of Chimeramon's Heat Viper.

"Wow," Cameron breathed in absolute awe. "That . . . was amazing." Chimeramon chortled in knowing appreciation.

Suddenly, the world around them began to tremble with increasing violence.

"Uh-oh," Chimeramon growled. "What's going on, Cameron?"

"It's Vademon's universe," Cameron replied tensely. "Without him around anymore, I don't think this universe can continue to exist."

"That doesn't sound good."

"It's not," Cameron agreed darkly. "If we don't find a way out of here, and I mean right now, this whole place is gonna collapse with us trapped inside."

"It's alright," Chimeramon grunted confidently. "Don't worry, Cameron. I swear I won't let anything happen to you."

Cameron gritted his teeth. He honestly couldn't think of any logical way that they could make it out of this alive, but Chimeramon was strong and he'd truly do his best to protect his partner. In the end, Cameron knew that it was their only fleeting hope.

"Let's go, buddy," Cameron said with determination, clutching tighter the red hair flowing from beneath Chimeramon's armored head.

Chimeramon released a deafening roar and prepared to use his full strength as the darkness around them continued shaking apart.

-

The mountain range surrounding the pass began trembling in the otherwise calm night air. An earthquake, it seemed, had struck. The trembling continued, gaining in strength and tumultuousness. Suddenly, the peak nearest the pass began to crack and crumble like a hatching egg. The fissures spread and expanded until the entire mountain exploded in a burst of shrapnel.

Chimeramon arose, flying into the air, from the now-demolished mountain. As the peak disappeared from view, Chimeramon landed softly on the edge of the pass. He helped Cameron hop down safely to the ground and began to glow with a golden light. His massive form shrunk quickly, only about a foot long in just a few seconds.

The light faded to reveal the fiery form of DemiMeramon yet again.

"Chimeramon!" Cameron exclaimed. "You DeDigivolved all the way back to DemiMeramon!"

DemiMeramon rubbed the back of his head sheepishly in embarrassment as best as he could with his stubby arms. "Yeah. I used up so much energy that I had to regress to my In-Training form. Digivolving to Ultimate took a lot out of me; I'll need to recover for a little bit before I can Digivolve again."

Cameron smiled warmly at his partner. "That's all right, buddy. You fought hard, and you were really awesome! I couldn't be prouder!"

DemiMeramon grinned with relief. "So . . . where to next?"

Cameron sighed and shrugged lightly. "I guess we just have to keep going until we're able to find what we need."

"That's okay!" DemiMeramon replied happily. "I'm happy to go anywhere, as long as we're together!"

Cameron beamed at his partner and laughed happily. "You got that right, buddy!"

DemiMeramon floated up to Cameron's shoulder and the two of them began walking along the edge of the cliff overlooking the pass, continuing their journey, hoping that someday, soon, they would find an answer.


	27. Princess Becca

Begun 1:21am on Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Finished 11:58pm on Thursday, July 28, 2011

**Previously in Digimon: Digital Monsters**

This is Cameron. While DemiDevimon and I were travelling around, searching for anything we could learn, we met Vademon and were taken to his own personal alternate dimension. There, he led me to his library full of tomes of knowledge. He tricked me into giving up my imagination under the ruse that I would be able to study better and faster, but DemiDevimon pushed himself to the limit to return my imagination to me. I realized its importance and that I couldn't truly find knowledge without it and my Crest began to glow. DemiDevimon Digivolved into his Ultimate Level, Chimeramon, and defeated Vademon. The Dimension began to collapse around us but Chimeramon was able to get us out safely. He DeDigivolved to his In-Training form, DemiMeramon, after having used up a lot of energy and the two of us continued on our journey.

**CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN**

**Princess Becca**

Blake and Meggy were walking along a dark evening path, their partners and Kokomon following dutifully behind. After Kokomon had rested and recovered from his ordeals, the five of them had set out to continue searching for their friends. They followed Kokomon's best guess at the direction Rainey had taken, but soon found themselves more or less lost; with no apparent clues, they simply forged ahead on a whim, hoping to meet up with someone. Of course, after nearly two days of walking, that hope was fast dwindling.

They'd discussed their plans and their aimless journey repeatedly and had exhausted all conversation topics. The five of them pushed forward, feeling the fatigue in their whole bodies, but still trying to travel as much distance as they could per day, pursuing the ideal that another friend may be waiting just out of reach.

As they trudged along, the sun quickly waning, thoughts of setting up camp for the night and resting weary feet flitted through all of their heads, but just as it was about to be suggested, the group noticed something far down the path.

"What is that?" Meggy wondered aloud, straining in the dim evening light to see the small, far-off silhouette.

"It looks like . . . a castle?" Blake said uncertainly.

"Seems that way," Conomon agreed.

"Do you think we should look there?" Kokomon wondered. Maybe they would find Rainey there. After all, what could be more enticing to a young kid like Rainey than a castle?

"It's not too far away," Meggy said slowly. "I say we go for it."

"What have we got to lose?" Blake agreed. "It's the best hope we have for finding our friends, and if nothing else we may be able to get a bed to sleep in tonight."

This prospect filled them all with a newfound strength, and they quickened the pace toward the castle so that they could fulfill the daydreams of warm baths, hot meals, and fluffy beds now swimming through their weary minds.

The castle grew in their vision with painful sluggishness, but they were all at least thankful to finally have a real, tangible objective for the first time on this journey that already seemed to have taken far longer than it had in reality. After too long a trek, the group finally found themselves looking up at the castle.

The castle itself was the same kind of castle as the ones in movies about medieval kings. It was constructed of massive white stones and blue roofing covering its towering pointed spires. The castle sat apart from the land: There was a deep, cavernous canyon surrounding the castle like a moat, with a steep fall that would surely be the end for any unfortunate traveler to fall off. A single bridge led from one end of the canyon to the entrance of the castle. There were no gates preventing entry, but the travelers saw no guards or signs of any life as they approached the bridge.

"Think it's safe?" Rabbitmon asked uncertainly.

They all stared at the bridge and the still castle, which now seemed to tower over them with a black, foreboding shadow in the dwindling daylight.

"Let's give it a shot," Blake said at last, with more resolution than he felt within.

The five travelers stepped with false confidence onto the bridge and proceeded in a tight group toward the dark, ominous entrance.

Just before passing through the walls and into the complex, the group witnessed a flash of green flit past their vision beyond the walls of the castle.

"What was that?" Kokomon asked fearfully. The group exchanged concerned looks. Before anyone could answer, another green figure flitted into and out of their field of view.

"Okay, that's kinda weird," Meggy muttered, her gaze set and focused on the entrance in readiness. Rabbitmon's fur bristled in anticipation, ready to protect her partner.

"Hey!" Blake called out suddenly, his voice echoing off the stones of the castle. He was immediately shushed, and Meggy clamped a hand over his mouth. Another green figure flitted past.

"What do you think you're doing?" Meggy hissed. "That could be anything. Do you want to get us killed?"

"We're not just gonna turn around and leave," Blake explained assertively in a whisper, "so we've gotta find out what that is one way or another. What better way?"

Meggy stared incredulously into his eyes. How could anyone think of something so reckless and just go ahead without second thought? And yet, she had no better ideas. She shrugged and nervously indicated that he should proceed.

"Hey!" Blake called again. "Is anyone there?"

At about the same moment, yet another green figure flitted past. There seemed to be no response for several moments, before the green figure skidded back in sight and stopped in the middle of the doorway, staring at them in surprise.

It stood probably about four feet tall, and looked like a bipedal frog. Its skin was mostly bright green and had a slimy look to it. Its long, spindly legs were twig-like, with no muscles to speak of, and they ended in feet with three webbed toes that splayed across the ground for balance. Its arms were nearly identical – like straws ending in three webbed fingers. Its torso was almost spherical, with a white belly and no other defining features. Then there was its head. Its head connected to its body via a very thin neck, but its actual head was large, almost a third of its entire body. It had a large, gaping mouth with short, sharp teeth. It had two large ovular eyes atop its head. The right eye was a bit larger than the left, and rose a bit further into the air, providing an off balance, almost goofy look to the creature. Its eyes were small yellow beads of concentric circles, comically small within its large eyeballs. Finally, its most defining feature was a golden brass instrument, like a small tuba, which encircled its neck, seemingly attached as an actual part of its body, and snaked around to the right of its head, where it rose to just above its head in height, pointing forward.

"Hello there," it said in an anxious, tired voice; it was high pitched and had a sort of gurgle-like, gravelly nature to it. It was clearly in a hurry and shifted its weight uncomfortably. "Um, welcome to Lord ShogunGekomon's castle. I, uh, can't really take the time to greet you right now, but feel free to show yourselves in."

The creature began to dash off, but Blake called out to him. "Wait! What's your name?"

"I'm Gekomon," the creature said carelessly as it disappeared hurriedly out of sight.

The travelers exchanged glances of surprise and confusion. Shrugging their shoulders, they trudged forward and into the no longer frightening castle.

"What a strange guy," Conomon remarked.

"He really was odd," Meggy agreed.

As they continued forward, they found themselves within the walls of the castle, in a large courtyard, on a path leading to the entrance of the actual castle building. They marveled at the courtyard, and saw several more Gekomon rushing about. They proceeded to the castle doors and entered the building.

The travelers found themselves within a large foyer, standing upon an intricately woven maroon rug. The hall was composed of large grey stones and held up by a line of parallel pillars that marched toward the next room. And rushing through the foyer was someone the children hadn't been expecting.

"Otamamon!" Meggy exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"  
Otamamon looked at them quizzically. "Do I know you?"

"It's me, Meggy," Meggy replied with sudden concern. At that moment, however, the group saw a pair of other Otamamon rush past the doorway to the next room.

"I'm sorry, I'm afraid I don't remember you," the Otamamon responded apologetically.

"Oh, I'm sorry, actually," Meggy said. "I seem to be mistaken. I thought you were someone else."

"It's not a girl who looks like you, is it?" the Otamamon asked.

The travelers perked up at this. "Yeah," Blake answered. "She doesn't look exactly like Meggy, but she is a human."

"A human girl appeared here some time ago with a partner Otamamon. Her name is Princess Becca, and she's in charge of this castle."

At that, the Otamamon seized the opportunity to rush off and resume whatever errand it was hurriedly doing, leaving the travelers in a shocked silence.

"_Princess Becca?_" Blake repeated incredulously.

"What does _that_ mean?" Conomon wondered.

They all shook their heads and looked skeptically at one another for several moments before Meggy broke the spell. "I'm not sure exactly what's going on, but the important part about this is that now we know Becca's here."

"Yeah!" Kokomon agreed. "And now we can reunite with her and then all go find Rainey together!"

"Yeah," Blake agreed. "This is great. That's three of us together, only four more to go."

They all smiled at this thought. They'd made another big step in their long journey. Suddenly, the hopelessness they'd been feeling was replaced by a renewed sense of hope and vigor; they really could find everyone and reunite. This could happen.

"I guess we need to go get Becca, then," Meggy suggested.

"Yeah, let's go find her," Rabbitmon agreed.

The group progressed through the doorway ahead. The castle seemed to be a series of great stone hallways with red carpet and many pillars, weaving in and out of various rooms. The group traveled down various hallways. As they would stumble across a Gekomon or Otamamon, they would attempt to stop it and ask for help, but the Digimon all seemed to be in such a frenetic hurry that it was impossible to raise the attention of any of them.

As they rounded a corner and were greeted with another, now familiar scene of rushing Digimon, one of the Otamamon stopped and stared at them for a moment before exclaiming, "Guys!"

The group jumped in surprise, as they'd gotten used to being ignored by the castle's denizens.

"Otamamon?" Meggy tried uncertainly. "Is that actually you?"

"Yeah!" Otamamon replied, a toothy smile breaking across her face. "I can't believe it's really you! It's been so long since we've seen anyone from the group; I thought we were never going to see you again!" Her large eyes began to water as tears of relief filled them.

Meggy and Rabbitmon rushed forward. Meggy stooped down, and she and her partner gave Otamamon a big, tight, comforting hug. "We finally found you!" Meggy said happily.

"Excellent," Blake declared as Meggy and Rabbitmon released Otamamon. "Now where is Becca?"

Otamamon looked up at them, now with troubled eyes. "She's here, just down the hall. I'm sure she'll be happy to see you." She didn't sound so sure.

Otamamon motioned for the group to follow her, and she led them down the hall. They rounded the corner and found themselves in a massive and immaculate throne room. It had numerous tapestries surrounding it, describing some sort of history involving the castle and its frog-like inhabitants. The red carpet extended into the throne room, lined with columns, and ran up a short set of stairs to a pedestal whereupon sat a gilded throne with red velvet cushioning and upon which sat Becca.

"Becca!" Meggy screamed as she saw her friend. Becca looked up with surprise and confusion as Meggy began to run toward her.

Several Gekomon who'd been standing to the sides of the throne rushed forward. They were wearing an extremely small and, most likely, ineffectual amount of leather armor. As Becca saw the travelers and Meggy rushing for her, a smile appeared on her face and she stood and began to move forward.

"Stand down, Gekomon," Becca said quickly before bounding forward. She and Meggy met at the bottom the throne pedestal and embraced each other, laughing and sobbing happily and exclaiming how wonderful it was to see each other.

By this time, the rest of the group had joined up behind Meggy, and Becca went to each in turn and greeted them with excitement.

"I can't believe it's really you guys!" Becca exclaimed joyfully. "I thought I'd never see you again." She turned to Blake. "Especially you. What happened to you?"

Blake laughed. "It's a long story, but for now let's just say I'm back and I'm doing fine and Meggy and I are traveling around trying to reunite everyone."

"Wow," Becca beamed. "That's so wonderful." She looked again at Kokomon and then glanced about curiously. "Where's Rainey."

The group all looked down uncomfortably. "We don't know," Conomon responded. "We stumbled upon Kokomon during our travels. Rainey and he . . . got separated."

"How horrible," Becca breathed. "I hope you find him soon."

"Me too," Kokomon murmured.

Becca gave the group another once over. "I'm sure you're all hungry and tired. You look exhausted. Why don't I have the Gekomon and Otamamon prepare a meal for you? I'll have them draw up a bath for each of you too, and you can all take a short rest in a room of your own and then join me for dinner!"

They all exclaimed their excited agreement. Becca called a Gekomon from the hall and told him to drop what he was doing and see to her guests, and the travelers bid a brief farewell to Becca as they followed the Gekomon.

"This is great, isn't it?" Otamamon said to Becca once everyone had departed and they were alone in the throne room with only the guards to hear.

"It really is," Becca agreed.

"They can all get a nice night's sleep, and then we can all leave in the morning and find the others."

Becca remained silent for a moment before responding. "Yes. Well . . . we'll see."

* * *

Meggy was lead by an obliging Gekomon down a large hall lined with doors. Blake, Conomon, and Kokomon had been left several doors down, with an assurance by Gekomon that someone would be along soon to take care of him.

Meggy marveled at the palace. It was comprised entirely of huge, cool, gray stones as big as her torso. There were large windows along most of the corridors, allowing the waning light to filter in and casting everything in a dull golden luster. Meggy noted with interest that the hallway, while long and having ample wall space, was sparsely decorated. A single suit of armor had greeted them upon their entrance to the corridor, a shoddily crafted bit of aluminum that resembled the shape of Gekomon. This had been the only decoration she'd seen. In fact, apart from a few other similar pieces scattered about in corners of corridors and rooms, the castle's only feature that distinguished the floor from the walls was the carpet and the windows.

The bleakness of the castle was somewhat wasted on her, however, as she was filled with visions of the hot bath she would be receiving in just minutes.

Gekomon motioned to a doorway and opened it for her. She was pleased to be met with warm colors through the portal; the walls of the room were adorned with tapestries of pinks, oranges, and yellows. The room had a cheery atmosphere – a welcome change from the dull surroundings. Meggy and Rabbitmon let out gasps of pleasure and excitement as they walked in.

"If you'll make yourselves comfortable I'll have a hot bath drawn up for you in just a moment," the Gekomon said apologetically.

"Not a problem," Meggy replied distractedly. She was still reeling from their sudden fortune. She and Rabbitmon obediently moved out of Gekomon's way and sat in a pair of plush, red velvet armchairs on one side of the room. The cushions gave gently as they lowered themselves into the chairs, cradling them comfortingly. The girls let out involuntary sighs. It was like sitting on a cloud.

Several more Gekomon rushed in to join the original Gekomon, who had since entering the room produced a large tub from an unseen place and begun pumping in hot water from a faucet at the back of the room.

Soon steam was beginning to fill the air as the large bath was nearing readiness. Two Gekomon worked on drawing the bath, while one stood nearby Meggy and Rabbitmon at attention, having noted several times that he was there to be of assistance if they needed anything.

Just a few moments more, and the bath was ready, piping hot. The Gekomon tested the waters with their webbed hands, tentatively.

"We do not wish you to enter the water while it is still too hot," Gekomon explained. "We made the mistake of drawing a bath for Princess Becca when she first came and letting her enter before it had cooled properly. She was nearly burned. We've since learned what temperature you humans prefer."

"We humans?" Meggy asked with a wry smile.

"Yes, ma'am," the Gekomon replied. "We Gekomon and Otamamon do not bathe in hot water, so when we were asked to draw a hot bath, we did not completely understand the request. We've since learned how to do it correctly."

Meggy nodded, noting the eloquence of the strange Digimon.

"There," the Gekomon declared. "The temperature is just right."

"Perfect!" Rabbitmon exclaimed.

The three Gekomon bowed and exited. Before leaving, the Gekomon that had been standing with Meggy and Rabbitmon turned. "I shall be outside the door. Call if you need anything." With that, he bowed once more and closed the door behind himself.

Meggy shrugged out of her clothes, acrid with sweat and caked with dirt. She didn't realize how long it had been since she'd last taken the time to really clean off. She dipped a finger in the water, sighing contentedly. The temperature really was just perfect.

"After you," she said to Rabbitmon, beaming. Rabbitmon leapt gently into the tub, diving under the water without a splash. Moments later, her head rose above the surface and she took in a deep breath, releasing a cry of relaxation.

"This feels great!" Rabbitmon said.

Meggy eagerly climbed in after her, wriggling down to sit in the tub. It was large enough that it could house her and Rabbitmon at the same time. Meggy sat on the bottom of the bucket, her knees pulled up to fit, and draped her arms along the sides of the tub. The water line came to her shoulder blades, filling her body with warmth. She let her head fall back, getting the tips of her hair wet, took a deep breath, and closed her eyes.

* * *

Blake and Meggy had both been provided with soft, light, cloth garments for dinner while some Otamamon took and laundered their clothes. They met each other in the hallway outside their rooms, exchanging contented smiles, wordlessly commenting on the relaxation they'd just had.

The entire party was feeling rejuvenated. They'd all been able to rest their aching feet and wash off the clods of dirt. The kids felt relaxed and rested, and the Digimon felt reenergized and untainted. The five of them followed Gekomon back through the castle's many corridors and halls to meet with Becca and Otamamon for dinner.

They soon arrived in the grand dining room, an absolutely massive hall with a ceiling so high that it was unseen in the darkness above them. Columns surrounded the table with lit torches protruding from them, casting a warm, flickering glow upon everything. The table itself was long, easily long enough for twenty plus guests to dine at once. It was covered in a white tablecloth with a red sash down the middle. There was a centerpiece of exotic fruits in the middle. The room did not hold the vaguely musty smell of the rest of the castle, but was instead filled with the smell of fresh-baking bread and sizzling meats.

The group found seats at one end of the table and were quickly served small salads as starters.

"Should we wait for Becca?" Kokomon asked uncertainly.

"The Princess will arrive shortly," the Gekomon waiter replied, and darted off.

They began to eat their salad, comprised of crisp baby greens, carrots, cucumbers, tomatoes, and a drizzle of some sort of vinaigrette. The moist crunch of the leaves was a refreshing change from the juicy, yielding fruits that comprised their usual diet in the Digital World.

Feeling refreshed, their hunger pangs somewhat lessened by the appetizer, they sat back and let their minds dream of what tasty meal would come next.

A Gekomon's voice rang out from somewhere nearby. "All rise for Princess Becca!"

The travelers shared a wry grin before slowly rising. Becca strode in, her chin held high, her nose to the ceiling, flanked by Otamamon and the handful of leather-clad Gekomon from earlier. She looked absolutely beautiful. She was wearing a sparkling white dress, slender and sleek and silk, and her blond hair was curled lightly, gleaming in the torchlight. She sat at the other end of the table – several yards from her friends – and Otamamon clambered into the chair at her right. The Gekomon guards, who had pulled the chairs out for her and Otamamon to sit, then stepped back against the wall and stood at attention.

She ignored them for several moments, as the Gekomon servers rushed about with various dishes. One placed a salad before her and Otamamon that was like that which the others had eaten, but somehow of a higher quality. Several others revealed a small variety of entrée options for her approval, a process that occurred at a surprisingly quick pace. Becca must have had a lot of practice in her time at the castle. She nodded to one dish in particular and the Gekomon were gone almost as instantly as they'd arrived.

Becca looked up then, smiling welcomingly. "Welcome, everyone!"

"We're very glad to see you," chimed Otamamon helpfully.

"Yes," Becca agreed.

"Thanks for the grub!" Conomon said, eliciting a hearty laugh from the others.

Becca looked Blake in the eyes. "I'm most surprised to see you. How did you get back? We thought you were gone for good."

Blake recounted his experience in the real world and his return to the Digital World. Becca was as surprised as they all were by the revelation of the time difference and the mysterious happenstance of Blake returning to the real world at all.

"That's incredible," Becca said. "So . . . no one knows we're gone?"

"Not a soul," Blake replied solemnly.

Becca shook her head in disbelief. "We spent so much time hoping and waiting for rescue, and nobody even knows we're gone."

"But what about you?" Meggy continued. "How did you come to be here in this big castle?"

Becca smiled knowingly. "Well, you remember when we left the desert. After you split up from me and Adam, we kept going through the forest. We found a diner run by this awful Digimon. We ate some food but then we couldn't pay. The Digimon told us we could pay for our meal by washing dishes, and Adam said that he and Kunemon would take care of it so that Otamamon and I could keep looking for everyone. We agreed on a direction I would travel, and he said he'd meet me. After a little walking, I came upon this castle. I figured Adam would come along sooner or later, and that anyone else who saw this castle would come to investigate, so I decided to stay here and wait."

Meggy nodded. "That doesn't explain how you came to be queen around here, though."

"Well, the Gekomon and Otamamon of the castle were desperate when I came along. The king of the castle has been asleep for a really long time and they needed someone who could lead them. They thought that I was right for the job and made me their queen."

Meggy furrowed her brow. That story seemed a little farfetched – and it looked like Becca was almost making it up as she went along.

"That's crazy," Blake said with a chuckle. He seemed oblivious to what Meggy had detected. "Well, it's pretty lucky that we found you here. I guess Adam is on his way here. Tomorrow morning we can all get up and start heading his way. Then we'll have over half the group back together!"

"All right!" Conomon said happily. "We're so close!"

"And we'll get to have a good night's rest before we leave," Rabbitmon agreed.

Meggy smiled at Becca, trying to convey her agreement with the others. "Tomorrow morning, then," she said.

Otamamon was smiling along with everyone else, but Becca did not seem to be in accordance. She was sitting stock still, her entire body rigid with tension, and her face was set in a tight scowl.

"Becca?" Meggy prompted. "How does that sound?"

Becca's eyes flashed for a moment, before a forced smile took over her expression. "That sounds all right, but perhaps we should stay here a bit longer?"

Otamamon looked confused. "Why shouldn't we leave in the morning?" Meggy asked evenly.

Becca cleared her throat. She looked immensely uncomfortable. "Well, if Adam is indeed on his way, he should be here any day now. Why not wait in comfort here?"

"I guess that's not a terrible idea," Blake considered uncertainly.

"Exactly," Becca said, seeming to relax very slightly. "If we were to stay, you guys could recuperate a little bit more. After just a few days, you'll be as good as new!"

"No!"

The sudden cry startled them, and they looked with surprise at Kokomon. "We can't wait here!" the young Digimon continued, his voice wavering slightly.

"What's wrong, Kokomon?" Conomon asked with great concern.

"Rainey!" he cried. "We can't just wait around here while Rainey is out there all by himself?"

"What happened to Rainey?" Otamamon asked concernedly.

Rabbitmon looked down. "He was tricked by a Digimon called Impmon into abandoning Kokomon. He's lost out there somewhere."

"We have to find him!" Kokomon concluded.

"Well we can't just abandon Adam!" Becca snapped, a bit viciously.

"Exactly," Meggy agreed, keeping her calm while keeping a suspicious eye on Becca. "That's why the best plan is to move out in the morning. If we do that, we can first travel to find Adam, and then put all our efforts into looking for Rainey and the others."

Becca looked enraged that she'd been bested. She grimaced tightly, grinding her teeth. "Absolutely not," she said. "We'll stay here another day and wait. That's what's best for everyone."

"Becca, you're being a little insensitive," Blake said gently. "Can't you see how hurt Kokomon is? We need to find everyone so we can find a way home, and we really need to find Rainey soon, because we know he's in danger."

"C'mon Becca," Otamamon murmured. "They're right. It's for the best that we leave soon."

"No!" Becca cried. "I see what this is! You're jealous!"

The entire group was taken aback. "What?"

Becca continued her assault. "That's right! You're jealous of me! You're jealous that I've been taken in as a princess here and that you are just guests. If you can't be royalty, then no one can, is that it?"

"Becca, you're being insane," Meggy retorted firmly. "We're thinking about the safety of our friends. We're thinking about Rainey being defenseless. We're thinking about finding a way home."

"You're thinking about punishing me for being happy!" Becca cried tearfully. "You're jealous and you want me to suffer!"

"Becca, stop this," Blake said authoritatively. "We're leaving in the morning and that's final."

"Guards!" Becca yelled. The Gekomon rushed forward to flank her. "These visitors are no longer our honored guests. They have come with evil motives. They are trying to overthrow your queen! Take them to the dungeon!"

Before they could react, the Gekomon had descended upon them. They kicked and bit and scratched as the Gekomon manhandled them away from their unfinished dinner. All but Meggy. She did not struggle. She did not cry out. She simply stared at her friend. Their eyes met, and she held Becca's gaze as she was dragged from the room.

When they were gone, Becca's shoulders slumped. Otamamon stared up at her partner with great concern. "Why did you do that?"  
Becca didn't react for several seconds before she turned to stare coldly down at her partner. "You don't want to hurt me too, do you, Otamamon?"

Otamamon stared in disbelief at her. What had come over her? Otamamon shook her head slowly.

"That's good." Becca said simply. She turned back to her plate and picked up her silverware. She stared at the utensils as though they were some sort of alien device she'd never seen before. She sat this way for several moments before Otamamon broke the silence.

"I'll go and make sure the Gekomon don't hurt our friends."

With that, Otamamon slid from her seat and plodded out of the great hall. Her soft footfalls echoed in the cavernous room, bouncing from the cold, gray stones.

Becca sat still in this room, staring at her food and being unable to eat it. She was motionless, a royal statue, sitting at the head of a huge empty table in a huge empty room.

* * *

Blake landed hard on his backside with a great thud. The Gekomon hadn't been too rough, but they hadn't been too gentle either. They glared with faces free of compassion as they locked the bars of the cell.

Blake and Rabbitmon had been thrown into one cell, while Conomon and Kokomon were in the cell next to his with Meggy. The guards had taken enough time to separate Digimon partners from their kids.

The cells were underground, beneath the castle. The hall was a crudely made tunnel of darkness, and the cells were simply recesses dug out of the tunnel with steel bars lodged into the solid dirt.

"Can you believe this?" Blake snarled angrily, rubbing his bruised backside.

Rabbitmon glowered, shaking her head.

"Let us out of here!" Kokomon called futilely after the guards, who were already out of sight, save for one posted at the entrance to the tunnel.

Blake sighed in exasperation as he leaned heavily on the dirt wall and slid down to a more comfortable sitting position.

"What are we going to do?" Rabbitmon asked.

Blake shrugged, his frustration and indignation giving way to momentary apathy.

"Meggy?" Rabbitmon called expectantly. She was none too pleased to be out of sight of her partner in this distressing situation.

"I'm here," Meggy replied with a similar hint of apathy. She wanted to reassure her partner, but she was as frustrated as the rest of them – more so, actually; Becca was her best friend in the world, and this betrayal cut deep.

"We have to get out of here somehow," Kokomon said, his voice full of despair.

"I could Digivolve," Rabbitmon posited. "These bars can't hold me when I'm Lynxmon."

"Please don't," Blake grumbled behind her, and she noted the cramped space. She'd probably crush Blake against the wall in this tiny cell.

Meggy shook her head. "That's not a good idea. If we wait, I'm sure Becca will come to her senses."

"I'm not," Blake muttered sullenly.

Rabbitmon was the first to see Otamamon enter. Otamamon walked quickly and directly and stood where she was visible to both cells. They could see that she had tears in her eyes.

"I'm so sorry," Otamamon said in a quavering voice. "I don't know what's come over her."

"That makes two of us," Blake said under his breath.

"I've never seen her act like this," Meggy said, concurring with Otamamon. "Sure, she can be a little selfish sometimes, but this is really on another level."

Otamamon shook her head. "She's really out of control. It's been like this for days."

"How so?" Rabbitmon asked.

"Well, we haven't been here for very long, but as soon as the Otamamon and Gekomon of the castle suggested that she could be the princess, she's been a changed person. She started acting different, and in no time was bossing the Digimon around without seeming to care if they were exhausted or if she was being unreasonable. She's even become distant to me. She barely lets me out of her sight, but she barely speaks to me or even looks at me when I'm with her."

"I know how you feel," Kokomon said, reflecting on his own similar experience with Rainey. "It's horrible."

Otamamon nodded her agreement. "It's almost like she's a different person. She even lied to you about how she came to be princess of the castle."

"She lied to us about that?" Blake perked up.

"It did seem a little unlikely," Meggy agreed, recalling her suspicion several minutes before.

Otamamon's face was grim. "She told you that we came here and the Gekomon and Otamamon of the castle were desperate for a leader because theirs was asleep. That's sort of true – they are desperate, but not for any leader. They want their leader to wake up, and they were lead to believe that Becca could wake him."

"What do you mean?" Conomon asked.

"They said that ShogunGekomon, their leader, can be awoken if someone sings him a beautiful song."

Meggy thought the prospect was ridiculous, before realizing that crazier things had happened since they'd entered the Digital World.

"Becca told them that she would wake their leader," Otamamon continued. "Gekomon and Otamamon make noise rather than music, and they asked Becca if she could sing. She was a little embarrassed to but she told them she could. They took her to ShogunGekomon's lair and put a microphone in front of her, but she said her throat was a bit parched. A Gekomon rushed to get her some water and she mentioned being hungry. They offered her dinner, and it spiraled out of control from there. By the end of dinner, she'd had several Digimon run an errand for her and had said she wouldn't be able to wake ShogunGekomon without some rest.

"The next day she quickly took to making excuses why she couldn't wake their leader yet, and the Gekomon and Otamamon ran to do her bidding. They understand that when she's satisfied, she'll finally wake ShogunGekomon – or at least, that's the agreement she made, and what they assume she'll do. But as more and more time passed, the Digimon stopped asking her about it and she stopped mentioning it. She went from asking for things before she could sing to simply ordering the Digimon around, and they've learned not to bring it up."

"How do they not realize that she's just taking advantage of them now?" Blake asked incredulously.

"Some of them do," responded Otamamon. "A few of them have started muttering that she has no intention of carrying through on her promise, but no one has tried to do anything about it. Most of them still believe that she will, and that the reason she hasn't yet is because she's a human and they just don't understand humans. No one has talked about giving up on her, but more and more Digimon lose faith in her as time rolls on.

"They even ask me to reassure them," she continued exhaustedly. "They say that since I'm her partner that I should know, but I really don't. I used to believe that she would carry through on her promise, but as time has gone on I've lost a lot of faith in her as well."

Meggy stood up. "We can't just sit here and let her take advantage of all the Digimon in this castle. We've got to talk some sense into her."

"I agree," Blake chimed.

"I do too," Otamamon said, "but in the state she's in, if you broke out or were released, I think she would lose it."

"You're saying there's nothing we can do?" Rabbitmon inquired.

"Not exactly," Otamamon replied. "She's been hard to talk to lately, but you guys showing up has really shaken her. She isn't as confident as she was before you arrived, and she isn't acting as rationally either."

"You think you can talk her out of it now?" Meggy asked.

Otamamon nodded. "I think deep down she feels bad about what she's been doing. I think she realizes that she's mistreating these Digimon and is so embarrassed that she figures going on like she has been is better than having to apologize."

The prisoners nodded solemnly at Otamamon's observation. Otamamon went on. "I think you showing up was the last straw. She's already been feeling guilty, and now her friends have shown up and seen her act in a way that makes her embarrassed."

"That still doesn't get her off the hook for throwing us in jail," Blake growled. "All we're trying to do is find our friends and get back home where we belong."

"She's not just embarrassed," Meggy replied. She understood Becca. Even if she hadn't seen her transformation into a spoiled princess, they'd been friends long enough that Meggy could figure her out. "She likes it here. She likes being pampered and treated like a princess. If nothing else, she likes taking baths and sleeping in a bed."

"That still doesn't excuse it," Blake shot back.

"No, but if you were in her position, wouldn't you have a hard time letting it go to walk around in the wilderness?" Meggy retorted. Blake crossed his arms and shut up, knowing the truth of her words. She turned to look at Otamamon. "We won't do anything drastic tonight. You try to talk some sense into Becca and get her to release us. If nothing has changed tomorrow or you don't think it's going to work, come back and talk to us and we'll figure out our next move."

Otamamon nodded gravely.

* * *

Otamamon stood nervously outside the door that lead to Becca's lavish bedchambers. Otamamon slept in the adjacent room, connected to Becca's by a large wooden door similar to the one she now stood before.

She was dreading the conversation before her. She was almost certain that it wouldn't be easy, and she was truly afraid both of the possibility that Becca would ultimately refuse to be reasonable as well as the likelihood of that occurring. In the past Otamamon would never have thought Becca could be capable of being so blatantly cruel to her friends, but after her tenure as princess in the castle, Otamamon didn't feel like she could put total faith in Becca's goodness any more.

She scrutinized the grain of the wood of the door. She was stalling; she knew it, but she didn't want to step through.

"Did you need anything in particular?" the Gekomon guard posted to the side of the door asked kindly.

"No," Otamamon replied. "I'm ready to enter."

The heavy door swung open into a room draped in cloth. Numerous silks of various colors and high quality were draped around the room, hanging from the ceiling and covering the walls. There was a beautiful red carpet rug covering the floor. There were several chairs, a makeup station with a mirror near a wardrobe full of clothes, and an immaculate bed in the center of it all. The bed was four-poster, with a soft mattress that felt like a cloud. Translucent silks hung down around the sides of the bed. Otamamon saw Becca's form, sitting slightly obscured through the silks and facing away from the door.

Otamamon cleared her throat as she entered. Becca did not turn. The door closed behind her with a dull thud.

Otamamon inched close to Becca, taking dainty footfalls on the rug to quiet her approach. As she came round to where Becca could see her, she saw that Becca was sitting, somewhat slumped, on the edge of the bed, her face turned away from Otamamon.

"Becca," Otamamon began timidly, "I just talked to the others. They're confused and their feelings are hurt. Don't you think you were a little harsh on them at dinner?"

Becca sat still for a moment. Otamamon wondered if she'd heard her. The tight ball of fear in the pit of her stomach began to grow and squirm as Otamamon waited for Becca's answer. Suddenly Becca turned, and Otamamon was horrified by what she saw.

Her hair was a mess, strands sticking out in all directions, as though careless fingers had run through it and thoughtlessly tugged at it. However, the truly horrifying thing was her face: Her eyes were bloodshot and watery, and there were clear trails cut through the makeup on her cheeks where tears still flowed freely. Her face was screwed up in a look of anguish, and the grief was so apparent that Otamamon took a step back.

"I know what I did!" Becca croaked, her throat strained from excessive crying. "Get out of here. I want to be alone. Just leave me alone!"

As Becca's gravelly voice began to scream, Otamamon turned and fled. Never had she seen such pain on her partner's face. It was so great that Otamamon felt it in her very bones. She ran from the room and didn't look back.

* * *

Becca stood in the hall of the great castle before the doors of the entryway. The doors were open, and soft, grey morning light streamed in around her, casting her shadow along the floor. A light breeze blew softly through her hair as a light rain fell outside.

She looked rather disheveled. Her dress – the same she'd worn at dinner the night before – had gone askew in the long, sleepless night, now no longer highlighting her beauty but rather looking like a mistake thrown onto her form. Her hair had strands standing in all directions, and her makeup from the night before was caked and smeared. It still had grooves cut into it where her tears had fallen, and the makeup was no longer hiding the dark bags that had been forming beneath her eyes.

She stared out the doors of the castle at the dreary morning. She was alone, for the first time in a long time. She knew the Gekomon guards were not very far off, and she assumed that Otamamon was near as well. However, she'd asked to be left alone in this room. It was in part a self-punishment; the silence and loneliness of the great hall weighed in on her, a nearly suffocating weight added to her own self-loathing. It was in part a desperate need for several more moments alone.

She had been so embarrassed by her behavior the past few – days? Weeks? How long had it been since she'd first arrived at the castle? She couldn't remember anymore. Her embarrassment at her behavior only grew with time, and had reached its apex when her façade was laid bare in front of her friends. She knew she'd acted foolish, acted like a spoiled girl, acted like a bad friend – and she knew that she now had to own up to what she'd done.

But that didn't make it any easier.

_It never is easy to admit you were wrong,_ Becca thought sullenly to herself.

She was suddenly aware of Otamamon's presence. She glanced to her side and saw Otamamon standing uncertainly in the doorway.

"Good morning," Otamamon said timidly after a strained silence.

Becca smiled with as much warmth as she could muster. Her partner understood and smiled back.

"I have to apologize for what I did," Becca said quietly.

She did not move. The room was still, as child and Digimon stared at each other. Otamamon finally broke the silence. "Take as much time as you want. I'll wait for you outside the dungeon." With that, Otamamon waddled away, leaving Becca alone again.

She stood there, still as a statue, silhouetted against the soft light of morning streaming through the doors of a castle that was not truly hers. She was slumped, the energy gone from her. Her head was hung, her hair dangling like rippling streams of water falling to the floor. She stood there still, listening to the patter of the rain, feeling the cold breeze brush against her skin, as time moved on around her.

* * *

Blake was still groggy from his restless night's sleep on the hard dirt floor of his cell. Groggy and cranky. After the promise of a bed to sleep in had been ripped away, he was none too pleased to sleep on the hard ground. They hadn't even had their meager travelling supplies. No bag to lay his head on. No option to search for some leaves or a patch of grass. Just the packed dirt floor of the prison cell, as hard as pure stone.

He heard the door open and scooted forward to see who it was that approached, followed by Rabbitmon. He knew Meggy, Conomon, and Kokomon would be crowding near the bars of their cell next door as well.

His heart fell as Otamamon walked slowly into view. He was hoping to see Becca, or at least some Gekomon guards, who would release him and the others from their unwelcoming cage. Otamamon returning alone meant bad news, and it meant that things would be getting messy soon.

Waiting for Becca to have a change of heart and release them of her own volition was one thing, and her transgression was already hard enough to forgive. If they were to be forced to break out and challenge her directly, a change of heart would hold much less weight.

However, he was stunned when Otamamon was followed seconds later by Becca. She looked different from the night before, but ultimately very familiar. She was in a light blue shirt with a dark blue heart on the front, wearing jeans and tennis shoes. She'd fixed her hair simply, with no elaborate styling, and the makeup had been washed off her face. She was back in the clothes she'd been wearing the day they'd been transported from their world. She'd changed out of her robes of royalty and donned her true costume.

Her face was contrite, and she looked more apologetic than she had in Blake's numerous imagined scenarios in which she'd groveled for forgiveness from them. There was a true despair there. He could see that she knew what she'd done, that she knew she'd been horrible, and that she knew full well that she might not receive forgiveness for her actions.

She motioned to someone out of sight, and two Gekomon rushed forward to the jingle of keys. One came to the cell containing Blake and Rabbitmon, the other going to the one next to that. The key slid in, the lock clicked open, and in just moments the doors to the cell were open.

The Gekomon retreated, and a silent moment passed. Blake and Rabbitmon stood, staring wordlessly at Becca and Otamamon. Blake assumed that Meggy, Conomon, and Kokomon were in much the same state. No one knew what to say. Blake knew he couldn't move until he was sure how he was going to react to Becca.

And then, in an instant, Meggy was there. Her arms were wrapped around Becca, whose face showed only surprise. Meggy hugged her, squeezing her tight to her, as Becca slowly returned the gesture, tears beginning to fall from her eyes again. She buried her face in Meggy's shoulder, her own beginning to shake from the sobs escaping her.

"I'm sorry," Becca wept. "I'm so, so sorry."

Meggy held her as the others crowded around, placing hands and paws of encouragement and forgiveness on Becca as her muffled sobs echoed down the dark corridor.

* * *

The group arrived in the great hall, Becca walking just behind a Gekomon guard in the lead. She had dried her tears, and while her eyes were still red and puffy, they now held determination rather than sorrow. She strode with confidence.

After she had released her friends, they had all forgiven her, but it had taken her several minutes to compose herself from her shame and contrition. After that, however, she knew that she had one more thing to do before leaving the castle. She'd turned to her Gekomon guard and asked that she be throne once more to the chamber of ShogunGekomon. The Gekomon had looked surprised for a moment before reverting to his usual poker face. He had turned and began to walk off, followed by the group of travelers.

They passed through the great hall and out into the courtyard in front of the castle. The dreary morning had given way to bright, golden sunlight, and a sheen of water drops glistening on the stones and plants was all that was left of the morning's rain.

They walked through the courtyard and along a side path of the castle to a large structure. The castle was enormous, but to the side was a building nearly as tall and quite large in its own respect.

"This is our great lord ShogunGekomon's throne room," the Gekomon explained to them in response to their confused glances. "He is too large to fit into the actual castle, and has his own quarters. It is where he currently sleeps."

They approached the tall square building, built from the same stone as the castle, though looking much less worn and weathered. There was a great door adorning the front, though it seemed to have no windows. Rabbitmon thought she could see places where the windows had been bricked up.

The doors were opened with a deep creaking groan, slowly revealing the inside of the structure. The room was dark – nearly pitch black – and the light cut through it like a knife. The doors were opened all the way and the group strode inside.

Gekomon and Otamamon lined the room, standing on either side of the doors, making an aisle leading to the back of the room. There, at the back, sat a creature that could only be the fabled ShogunGekomon.

He was massive, covered in slimy red skin. He looked almost spherical, sitting in upright in his sleep. There were webbed feet and hands sticking out from his bulbous body that resembled those of the Gekomon. His stomach was a yellowed beige, and his belly button stuck out and was covered in an x of tape. A small red tail hung limply behind him. Around his neck stuck out green leaves, making a sort of collar. His mouth was massive, hanging loosely open, snores emanating with a deep base. His chin was large and looked as though it could be inflated, much like a toad back in the real world. He had whiskers or feelers of some sort that extended out from his nose, making a crooked mustache. His giant eyes were closed in slumber. A red tube, a feeler of some sort, arched from the back of his head and rested just over his skull, it's purple, feathery, tentacled tip hanging loosely. Finally, much like his Gekomon subjects, he had two golden horns on his back, one arching up over each shoulder.

The beast was massive, and his snores reverberated off the walls of the huge building. The Gekomon and Otamamon gathered there were collectively holding their breath as a Gekomon presented a microphone on a stand to Becca. The light spilled in around her and her friends stood in the doorway behind as she cleared her throat. Her amplified voice rang and echoed in the chamber from unseen speakers, and an excited murmur passed over the crowd present.

"Hello, everyone," Becca said uncertainly. She glanced at Otamamon, who nodded encouragingly. "I wanted to say thank you so much for your hospitality. It was very kind of you to take me and Otamamon in, as well as to provide for my friends last night."

The crowd remained quiet, staring at her expectantly, though some exchanged knowing glances with each other.

Becca continued. "Next, I wanted to apologize. You were very kind to take us in, but I let your kindness get to me, and I took advantage of you. I've mistreated you and abused your generosity, and for that I am deeply sorry."

The crowd remained silent, though surprise was evident on some faces.

"I have to leave," Becca announced. "My friends have come looking for me, and still more are out there. We have to find them so we can make sure everyone is safe, and then we're going to find a way back to our own home."

ShogunGekomon breathed heavily, his rumbling bass overpowering Becca and giving pause to the whole event. His deep voice bounced off the stone walls of the room, filling their ears as it slowly diminished in intensity. When it had faded, Becca continued speaking.

"Before I leave, I will honor the promise I made to you when I first arrived." She smiled at them all. "I know I haven't lived up to the expectations you had when I first came here, but now I'm going to stop stalling and do what I said I would."

A Gekomon from the crowd strode forward in that moment, suddenly, and Becca stopped speaking in surprise. The Gekomon clumsily ran forward, falling before her in a deep bow. After a moment, he looked up to her. "Thank you, mistress. We will forever remember your kindness, and we will repay you. If any other humans come to this castle, we will send them after you."

Becca smiled, overwhelmed with the kindness of the Digimon. "Thank you, Gekomon," she said fondly.

The Gekomon turned to the gathered crowd. "This is Princess Becca of ShogunGekomon castle. We owe her a great debt."

There then erupted an unexpected sound: A great cheer rose from the crowd, wrapping around Becca, overwhelming her. The Otamamon cried out happily, slapping their tiny feet and webbed tails against the stone floor. The Gekomon stamped their webbed feet and clapped their webbed hands, trumpet bursts erupting from the trumpets on their backs. The cacophony was staggering – not music as much as noise. It was deafening, and hurt Becca's ears a bit, but she did not flinch or grimace. This noise, as thunderous and erratic as it was, was like the sweetest song to her.

The cheer died down after a minute and the Gekomon spoke once more. "Princess Becca came to us some time ago and promised to help us wake our great king, ShogunGekomon. She has come today to fulfill this promise. Now, let us be silent and listen to her beautiful song!"

The Gekomon leapt from before Becca to rejoin the crowd, the slap of his webbed feet on the ground the only sound in the great hall. It echoed from the floor and walls, almost comical in a room of such magnitude.

Becca took a deep breath, trying to relieve her tension. For all the reasons she'd come up with to not sing ShogunGekomon awake, from the partially true to the completely false, it was still true that she was nervous to sing in front of anyone. Becca had a passable singing voice, but she didn't find it to be anything special, and she never sang in front of anyone if she could help it. She wouldn't even sing in the shower unless she was the only one home.

Despite her nerves and inhibitions, she took a deep breath and readied herself. She had made a promise, and this was her duty to fulfill it. Plus, if nothing else, her apology to her friends would mean less if she couldn't deliver on a promise to sing a simple song.

So, she thought of the song she would sing, breathed in deeply, and began to sing.

"Catch a falling star and put it in your pocket, never let it fade away. Catch a falling star and put it in your pocket, save it for a rainy day. For love may come and tap you on the shoulder –"

She would have continued singing, but a huge, deep grumble cut her off. She looked up, as the Otamamon and Gekomon gasped and turned to stare up at ShogunGekomon. The great Digimon stirred in his slumber, and then one of his eyes opened. The eye was as red as he was, a red dot swimming in the white expanse of the rest of his eye. He slowly opened his other eye, showing his off kilter eyeballs as a joyous cheer erupted from the host of amphibian Digimon gathered there.

But ShogunGekomon did not look pleased. He winced at the raucous cheer and shook his head groggily. "Who disturbs my slumber?" he boomed. His voice was so loud and deep that Becca could feel it in her chest.

The cheer died down abruptly, and the Digimon stared up at him.

ShogunGekomon's face continued to contort into indignant rage. "Who _dares_ interrupt the sleep of the king?"

A Gekomon stepped forward timidly. "Sir, we just –"

"Silence!" ShogunGekomon roared, his anger boiling forth now. He swept his pupils around angrily. "I was in the midst of a wonderful sleep, and now I have been awoken. I will not be happy until I have found the culprit and punished them!"

Becca's body stiffened in fear. This was not what she had expected. Otamamon bristled beside her, and behind her Meggy and Blake readied themselves to run or fight at a moment's notice.

ShogunGekomon's eyes fell upon Becca, and narrowed to slits. "You there," he growled. "Did you have a hand in this?"

Becca's mouth had gone dry, and for a moment she was transfixed with fear as the massive creature glared down at her. Then she pulled herself together and moved to speak into the microphone. "Yes. I came upon this castle and the Digimon here asked me –"

"Enough!" ShogunGekomon roared, and his massive webbed hand was screaming down toward Becca. She let out a piercing scream as the giant hand rushed down to crush her.

"Becca!" Meggy cried from behind her. They were too far behind her for anyone to reach her. Even Lynxmon would be hard pressed to get to Becca from the several yards' distance between them, and even then only if Rabbitmon didn't have to Digivolve first.

But as Becca screamed in terror, her Digivice began to glow.

"Otamamon! Digivolve to . . ."

" . . . Tortomon!"

There was a massive crash and the ground began to shake as ShogunGekomon's hand slammed down. Becca ducked, screwing her eyes shut tight, and for a moment she thought she'd been done in. She slowly opened her eyes to see her partner standing before her, evolved into her Champion form. Tortomon's hard shell was covered in pointed spines all along her back – spines that now had pierced ShogunGekomon's flimsy skin.

"Aaaaahhhhhh!" he cried out. There was a sickening slurping noise as his retracting hand pulled out of Tortomon's spines, and then he drew his hand swiftly back to him, roaring in pain and rage all the while. Blood sprayed from his pierced hand, smattering the now panicking Gekomon and Otamamon between him and Becca, and tipping Tortomon's spines.

"Oh, Tortomon!" Becca croaked, her throat dry from fear. Tortomon, however, grunted and then glowed in a brilliant light, shrinking in size to reveal a wincing Otamamon.

"Otamamon!" Becca cried, rushing to her devolved partner. She picked up Otamamon and cradled her near. "What happened? You just Digivolved!"

Otamamon's voice was weak. "ShogunGekomon is an Ultimate level Digimon, much stronger than I am in my Tortomon form. His attack would have done a lot of damage even if I'd had time to properly defend against it, but without that it was all I could do to keep myself from being crushed."

"Oh, Otamamon," Becca wept. "Thank you for saving me. I'm so sorry you got hurt!"

ShogunGekomon's roaring had transitioned from its mix of pain and rage to a simple bellow of pure rage. He was glaring at Becca, his bleeding hand held in his other. He looked to be readying another attack.

There was a flash of fiery fur, and suddenly Lynxmon stood before Becca and Otamamon.

"Climb aboard," Lynxmon grunted. She must've Digivolved around the same time Otamamon did. Becca was stunned, but mobilized quickly. She grabbed a tuft of Lynxmon's flaming fur, still marveling that it didn't burn her, and then the wind was screaming past her ears as Lynxmon made a mighty leap back to the others.

They had retreated outside in the several seconds of chaos surrounding ShogunGekomon's awakening, once they were sure that Lynxmon would be able to reach Becca and Otamamon and that they hadn't been crushed. Lynxmon leapt next to them. "Everyone on!" she barked.

Blake grabbed Conomon while Meggy had Kokomon. They each positioned the tiny Digimon between themselves and Lynxmon's body to hold them still, as neither Digimon had any way to grip powerfully enough to stay on Lynxmon at full speed. They grabbed tufts of Lynxmon's fur as Becca strengthened her hold. Lynxmon grunted uncomfortably under the weight of so many passengers, but in seconds, once she was sure they all had a solid hold of her, she was off.

The wind ripped the sounds of ShogunGekomon's rage from their ears, and in two bounds they were on the bridge leading from the castle to the rest of the land. Two more bounds and they were across the narrow bridge above the gaping chasm, and Lynxmon continued her desperate flight. Becca glanced back at the castle. ShogunGekomon had not burst forth to follow them. She worried that his rage had been turned on his subordinates, and she hoped they would be all right.

Lynxmon sprinted at an all out run for several moments, panting heavily before finally coming to a stop. They'd put a stunning distance between them and the castle, though it was still visible, looking like a gleaming toy model silhouetted against the sky. They dismounted the fiery Digimon, who glowed in a light and shrank to her Rabbitmon form. She lay there, exhausted and panting even after her form change.

"Thank you, Lynxmon," Becca said quietly. "Without you, Otamamon and I would have been goners."

Rabbitmon smiled weakly. "Don't mention it."

Blake and Meggy stared at Becca for several moments, grim looks on their faces. "We're glad we found you," Blake said at last.

"It's good to be back together," Meggy concurred.

Becca chuckled softly and looked them both straight in the eyes. "I'm sorry again. I was a little overwhelmed, and I really lost sight of who I am."

Blake and Meggy shared a glance, and Meggy spoke. "We're just glad to have you back."

It was a simple sentence, and it didn't directly address Becca's concerns, but she understood that they had truly forgiven her and that it was now time to move forward. "Thanks guys," she said softly. "Thanks a lot."

They all shared a smile amongst themselves. Then Blake turned, Conomon still in his arms, and looked out at the wide wilderness before them. The sun played off the scraggy grass blades on the rocky road before them. A dark forest loomed, as well as some high mountains. Clouds drifted lazily overhead.

He squinted in the sunlight, scanning the horizon. "All right, guys: Where to next?"


	28. The Spider's Web

Begun 4:57pm on Thursday, August 4, 2011

Finished 1:28pm on Friday, August 05, 2011

**Previously in Digimon: Digital Monsters**

This is Meggy. Blake, the Digimon, and I were traveling around looking for our friends when we came upon a massive castle. We soon discovered that Becca was there – as the castle's princess! When we tried to get her to leave with us, she threw us in jail. However, she had a change of heart and decided to leave her royalty behind. She had promised the residents of the castle that she would sing their leader, ShogunGekomon, awake, but when she did, he became enraged and tried to crush Becca. Tortomon and Lynxmon were able to rescue her from ShogunGekomon and we all escaped from the castle to continue the search for our friends.

**CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT**

**The Spider's Web**

Blake, Meggy, Becca, their Digimon partners, and Kokomon crested a hill. They'd been walking along a dirt path surrounded by pristine fields of grass for some time. As they crested the hill, they were greeted with a surprisingly complete view of the land before them. The hill was higher up than expected, and from this vantage point, the travelers could see for at least a mile in all directions before them.

They saw a forested area to the left, with a great lake before them. There was an abandoned looking dock at one point on the lake. To the right were mountainous canyons, towering out of the earth.

"I think I see someone!" Becca exclaimed suddenly. She pointed, and her companions all followed her gaze. Sure enough, four figures walked through the shimmering haze of heat rising off the dirt road.

"No way," Blake breathed in disbelief. "I think that's Casey and Adam!"

A cry of celebration arose from the group, and as one they burst into a sprint toward the distant figures. Several moments later, the figures began running toward them as well.

As they swiftly neared each other, it became all too apparent that these were indeed their long-lost friends. Adam, Kunemon, Casey, and Prairiemon were all running toward them.

It took them almost no time before the two groups had converged on the road, panting and looking happily at one another. Eyes widened at the sight of Blake and Conomon.

"I know," Blake laughed, knowing that he would yet again tell the story of what had happened when he'd been sucked through Etemon's portal. "I'll tell you all about it."

Casey's brow furrowed, and a frown crossed his face. "Where's Rainey?"

"We don't know," Becca admitted.

"We were hoping he was with you," added Otamamon.

"He's lost," Kokomon piped up.

Casey and Adam gasped. "What are you doing here without him?" Casey demanded. "Where is my brother?"

"Calm down, dude," Blake said, a hint of sadness in his voice.

"He was tricked," explained Kokomon. "After you left, a Digimon called Impmon joined up with us. He lied to Rainey and turned him against me, then he beat me up and they left me alone."

"We were lucky to have found him," Meggy added. "He was lying beaten, bruised, and abandoned in the dirt."

"We've been looking for everyone, but we've been hoping most to find Rainey," Rabbitmon continued.

"He's the youngest," sobbed Kokomon. "He's so much younger than everyone else and he's out there all alone."

Casey looked like he was going to have a heart attack. "Maybe Cameron's with him," Adam posited. They all looked at him. "Now that we've found each other, Cameron, DemiDevimon, and Rainey are the only ones of our group that are still missing. If we've all found each other after all this time, there's probably a pretty good chance that Cameron is taking care of Rainey right now."

"I hope you're right," Casey glowered. He wasn't so sure. After all, Cameron had gone ahead of them all, so if Rainey were to have rendezvoused with them, he would've had to travel faster than Cameron did or Cameron would have to have been delayed. Neither seemed particularly likely to Casey. Prairiemon saw Casey's dark expression put a comforting claw on his arm.

"We'll find your brother," Blake said with great determination, addressing Casey but including Kokomon as well.

Adam pointed to the chasm in the mountains that were now nearby. "They must've gone this way."

"How do you figure that?" Meggy asked.

"Well, we all came from that direction," Adam explained, pointing back at the forest opposite the lake from them. "You guys came from that way, and we came from this way, so the only other way to go that we haven't tried is through this canyon."

"That seems right," Becca agreed.

"Maybe we should split up," Casey interjected. "It's possible he went that way, but who knows which way my brother went?"

Blake walked forward and placed a hand on Casey's shoulder. "I know this is hard for you. You have to believe that we're going to do everything we can to find your brother as quickly as possible. But I think that splitting up the group when we've just found each other would do more harm than good."

Casey was about to disagree, but Prairiemon shook his head. Casey knew that it would probably set them back more if they split up than it would help them, but he still couldn't help in his desperation but feel that it wasn't a wholly terrible idea. He resigned not to say anything, however.

"All right," Blake said, addressing the whole group, "I think Adam's suggestion is pretty solid, and it's the only lead we have to go on." He cast a knowing look to Casey. "So I think we should all head out in this direction."

There was a smattering of nods and voiced agreement, and with that, the motley crew of wanderers set off on the road leading to the great chasm and the towering red mountains.

* * *

Rainey awoke slowly, stretching and groaning groggily as he propped himself up and looked around through crusty, sleepy eyes. His vision was blurry at first, slowly coming into focus to reveal the dark black bark of the trees all around him.

He and Impmon had been traveling through a forest for days. Sometimes they walked near the edge of the wood, but usually it was just trees and darkness all around, as far as Rainey could see. Impmon asserted that he knew where he was going, and he always seemed to walk with purpose, but they'd been traveling for many days now and had yet to arrive at any destination. Each day they walked, taking numerous breaks to rest Rainey's aching feet. Their meals had become meager as the days wore on, and sometimes Impmon left Rainey alone as he ate, claiming that he had business to tend to.

Impmon had grown distant recently. He had been playful and funny and had really seemed to care for Rainey at first, but recently he always seemed to be thinking about something else. Whenever Rainey would try to begin a conversation, he seemed startled by the sudden noise, and would give short, terse answers until the conversation quickly ceased. Rainey didn't know if he'd done something to offend Impmon, but the fact was that they hardly spoke at all anymore.

This was made all the worse by the fact that Rainey had no idea where they were going. He spent his time following Impmon through the dank trees, and lately Impmon had gone from walking alongside to walking several paces ahead, heightening even more the loneliness that had been growing in Rainey.

He wished Lopmon were still with him. He felt extremely guilty about leaving him behind. He thought perhaps Lopmon was following along, watching over Rainey but afraid to reveal himself for fear of making Rainey mad. Rainey wished Lopmon would just show himself, because Rainey was more than willing to forgive him. He'd hug him and tell him it was all right and they could be best friends forever and then it wouldn't matter if Impmon didn't want to talk to him.

One time Rainey had been feeling particularly lonely and particularly guilty for abandoning Lopmon. He'd asked Impmon if they could stop and go back until they found his partner Digimon again. Impmon had been stern, even a little mean, telling Rainey no. Impmon was so violently opposed to the idea that Rainey had been somewhat frightened. Impmon saw this and softened.

"Aw, come on kid," he had said. "I'm your partner now, and I'm taking care of you, ain't I?"

Rainey had shrugged, not knowing what to say.

"'Course I am," Impmon said, winking and brushing some dirt off Rainey's cheek with a gloved thumb.

"Where are we going?" Rainey had asked.

Impmon's demeanor had snapped back to being distant and cold at that. He told Rainey that he would just have to wait and see and walked off, Rainey following morosely behind.

Rainey broached the subject several more times after that. Each time, Impmon told him they couldn't go back, and encouraged Rainey to forget about his old partner. Rainey still brought it up several times, though he began to wait for them to stop rather than bring it up while they were walking.

Impmon continued to say no, so Rainey began to request that rather than turn around, they simply stay and wait for Lopmon to show up. Impmon became even more exasperated and told him they didn't have time to wait around, and that he didn't think Lopmon was following them anyway. Rainey argued with him but he would hear none of it.

Rainey began asking to stop more often, and waiting for longer periods before agreeing to continue walking. He figured that if he could delay them a little more, it would give Lopmon a chance to catch up. Impmon seemed to realize what he was doing after a little while, but didn't say anything about it. Rainey did, however, catch Impmon staring angrily at him several times.

Finally, one day, the pressure became too great, and Rainey stopped and began calling Lopmon's name to the thick, dark forest behind.

"What are you doing?" Impmon had snapped, obviously very annoyed.

"I'm trying to get Lopmon to come out and stop hiding from us," Rainey replied. He turned and called his partner's name several more times. His voice was swallowed up by the thick foliage overhead and the numerous tree trunks all around. Not even an echo returned to his ears. It was almost as if he hadn't made any noise at all. He called several more times before Impmon yanked hard on his shirt. Rainey called out in surprise.

"Now listen here," Impmon growled. "I am your partner now. I don't know what happened to your little friend, but I can tell you he's not following us. You told him to beat it, and he did. He's given up on you and you need to give up on him."

Rainey felt a little stunned. It was a thought he knew could be a reality, the thought that Lopmon had abandoned him as well, but he hadn't allowed himself to believe it. Impmon released him and resumed walking.

Rainey stood staring after him for several moments, stunned as he finally let the weight of the truth crash around him. He realized he'd been foolish for even thinking Lopmon would follow him. Of course Lopmon had abandoned him. He'd abandoned Lopmon; it was the only reasonable thing for Lopmon to do.

Rainey had fought back tears that threatened to fall and began to trudge after Impmon some more.

This was the way it had been since they'd left Lopmon behind. Endless walking through an endless black forest. The forest was always thick and always dark. It was so dark, in fact, that it was impossible to tell what time of day it was, and night was only distinguishable because there was so little light that it was impossible to travel.

All these memories rushed back to Rainey as he wiped the crust from his tear ducts. He was used to it by now. Every morning he remembered his guilt at abandoning Lopmon and felt his sorrow at realizing Lopmon had abandoned him as well. But just because he was used to feeling these things didn't mean they'd lost their sting.

He looked around, expecting to see Impmon standing there, waiting for him to get up. He never did see Impmon sleep. Sometimes Impmon yawned and seemed tired, but he'd never seen Impmon asleep. Impmon always stayed awake – "watching over him" – as Rainey fell asleep, and every morning he was there, standing and watching Rainey, waiting for Rainey to wake up and begin another day of endless walking.

Once, Rainey awoke in the middle of the night after a bad dream. He'd found himself alone, and panic seized him. He ran around the small area they'd carved out as their campsite for the night and called Impmon's name over and over. Impmon had finally come sauntering into sight, and reassured Rainey that he'd been just out of sight, on another one of his mysterious trips to take care of "business."

This morning, Rainey was surprised to find that Impmon wasn't standing waiting for him. He scrambled up as best he could with still-stiff muscles, and looked frantically around the circular area they'd chosen for camp. The memory of that night he'd woken alone flooded in on him, and panic rose once more in him, forming a tight not in the pit of his stomach.

He called Impmon's name several times facing in all directions, but there was no response. Rainey reminded himself that this was much like last time, that there was nothing to worry about, that Impmon was just out of reach. He sat down and decided to eat.

Rainey opened the small sack Impmon had fashioned for him. It was just a large square of cloth, but they'd pulled the ends together and tied them, and in it they carried their nearly diminished supply of fruits. He took out one of the few that didn't seem to have any bruises or rotted spots on it and bit into it. The juicy flavor seemed bland to him. Everything was bland in this dark, endless forest.

He ate slowly and silently, keeping a watchful eye on the unmoving dark in the colonnade of trees. It was impossible to see very far here, and Impmon's dark coloration let him blend in strikingly well with the constant blackness of the wood, but still Rainey kept diligent watch for the first sign of Impmon's return.

After finishing his drawn-out breakfast without a sign of Impmon to be found, he felt the panic rise in him once more. He tried to fight it by thinking about something else. He absentmindedly sniffed his armpit, a look of revulsion stealing over his face.

He realized that he reeked all over, not just from his armpits, but everywhere. He thought back and was suddenly conscious of the fact that he hadn't bathed since those many days ago that he'd left Lopmon behind. In fact, it might have been weeks ago. Either way, Rainey had had nothing in the way of hygienic care since leaving the lakeside behind. He and his clothes were caked with dirt, and he had the filmy feeling to his skin that came from constantly sweating without washing. He was briefly acutely aware that he stank of body odor, and that his clothes had soaked up his stench over their journey, mixing with the earthy odor of dirt and the rich scent of the trees to create a noxious perfume that surrounded him. He smiled a bit as he thought that perhaps that was why Impmon was walking so far ahead of him these days.

His smile faded as this thought brought him back to reality. He'd been awake for some time now, probably near half an hour, and Impmon was still nowhere to be seen. Rainey suddenly began to worry that something had happened to him, perhaps that a bad Digimon had gotten hold of him on his way to or from whatever it was he was doing. Rainey's panic returned full-force, and he got to his feet and began to wander around a tight circle, calling Impmon's name as loud as he could.

He called and called, his voice scratching as he screamed. His cries still sounded as pathetic as they had so long ago when he'd been calling for Lopmon. The trees seemed to swallow all sound that passed between them, but still Rainey cried out. He screamed Impmon's name to the unmoving wood until he was hoarse. He kept trying to call out until he realized that his voice was so hoarse that not even someone standing before him would be able to hear him clearly.

Rainey sat down with a thud, feeling tired from screaming so much. He wasn't sure how much more time he'd spent calling out to Impmon, and worried that it was going on an hour since Rainey awoke. He was alone in this deep wood with no idea where he was, where he was going, or how to get out of here. Impmon was gone with no explanation, and now he couldn't even talk. He was dirty, he stank, he hadn't had anything to eat in who knows how long but this same stupid fruit, every day, day after day. Lopmon was nowhere to be found, probably as far away from Rainey as he could probably be. He'd probably never forgive Rainey for what he'd done. Not only that, but all of his friends were out there too, and he didn't even know if Blake and Gizamon were alive or not. The world seemed to be weighing down on Rainey as he felt his extreme loneliness. He felt hot tears well up in his eyes and they began to fall down his dirt-caked cheeks, tracking lines through the grime. He sobbed, his body convulsing, water flowing freely from his eyes, the sobs bursting out as hoarse notes. It was a pitiful scene.

He stayed there, crying quietly, for some minutes. He wept, staring down at the dirt beneath him through eyes blurred by salty tears. His eyes stung and he felt weak. He realized he hadn't had much to drink. Impmon had been bringing him water periodically, but it had been too long and he had sweat too much since his last drink, and now here he was crying. He felt drained, physically and emotionally.

He continued to cry, his lamentable cries vanishing in the unforgiving forest. He sat and sobbed uncontrollably, unaware that a creature was creeping ever near, watching him hungrily.

Dokugumon was large, with a bulbous backside probably twice the size of this human child. It was black, with a white skull and crossbones on the top, and a large red stinger sticking out the back. Her midsection was a small sphere from which eight legs sprung, four on each side. Each leg looked a bit different, her back legs black and yellow striped, her back-middle yellow and purple striped, and her front-middle pure black. They were all covered in coarse hair and ended in sharp red claws. Her midsection was covered on top by a shock of red hair, a mane that sprouted from the back of her head and covered the middle of her body. Her hair hung down in two long red strands, one on either side of her face. Her front most legs were much smaller than the rest, and had hands with gripping red claws on them rather than feet, and these clutched the red strands of hair when Dokugumon wasn't using them. Finally, her head, nearly the size of her midsection, was almost completely covered in a yellow mask. It covered the entire top of her head, leaving only her mouth uncovered at the bottom and her red hair sticking out behind. Her mask was bright yellow and hard as armor, and her nine green, menacing eyes stared out soullessly from it. The mask had a horn on either side extending out, striped with black markings. Finally, her mouth below her mask was gaping open, made of purple skin. She had a lower jaw that hung far below the brim of her mask, and she also had two other parts of her mouth, one on either side. The jaw and the two side pieces had huge white teeth protruding from them. The sides of her mouth were used to grab her prey and shove it into her gullet, while her jaw actually crushed in once inside her mouth.

Dokugumon, a great spider Digimon, was queen in this portion of the forest. All Digimon knew it, and so it took a foolish traveler like this one for her to get a meal within her realm. But today was her lucky day.

As Rainey sat crying, oblivious to his surroundings, Dokugumon crept forward. She was surprisingly stealthy as she slowly approached the young boy. She crept forward, scuttling between the trees. As she neared him, she pulled herself into the canopy of leaves overhead to obscure her from sight, in case the child opened his eyes.

She scurried forward until she was perched just above the child. She opened her great toothed maw and called out her attack. "Poison Thread!" Sticky silken thread lined with poison shot out. The child was startled beneath her, but before he'd had time to raise his head and search for the source of her voice, the web had already snared him.

Dokugumon had the uncanny ability to control the web shot from her mouth, and she used this ability to wrap it around her prey. In seconds, Rainey's arms had been squeezed to his sides as a cylinder of sticky web formed around his chest and stomach. From his seated position, he wasn't able to quickly rise and try to run away, particularly without the use of his hands, and he kicked his legs in futility, nearly falling over if not for the tension on the string leading above. He cried out in shock and fear, and looked up to see who had captured him. When he saw the menacing face of the giant spider above him, he let out a bloodcurdling shriek that seemed to pierce the thick silence of the wood.

Rainey was pulled with stunning force and speed into the tree canopy and suddenly the wind was rushing past as leaves and branches slapped and tore at his exposed face. He cried out, closing his eyes against the foliage and squirming helplessly in the iron grip of the web. He tried to turn his head as far as he could to look behind him, getting a glimpse of the massive spider from the corner of his eye. It had slung him onto his back, holding him still somehow, and was now rushing through the canopy of the forest.

"Impmon!" Rainey cried helplessly. He was already worried that Impmon had abandoned him, but now even if Impmon came back he wouldn't be able to find Rainey. This Digimon was surprisingly light footed; the branches barely shook as it barreled past, and nary a leaf fell from above.

Rainey continued to struggle against his bonds, crying out occasionally. However, there was no weakness to be found in the web. His arms were so tight to his body that he couldn't even bend his elbows, and his hands hung uselessly, just out of reach to try to tear at the web.

In addition to being locked up tight, Rainey began to realize there was another problem. As he struggled, he noticed the skin on his arms tingling where it touched the web. Slowly but with definite sureness, Rainey realized that the energy was being drained from him. He understood that the web was possibly lined with some sort of poison, and whether or not this Digimon was stealing his energy, he was most definitely losing his energy.

Assuming the Digimon was taking him somewhere and that they would have to stop soon, Rainey decided to cease his struggling. His energy was draining frighteningly quickly, and the web encasing him showed no signs of weakening. He decided to save what little strength he had left. If nothing else, he could remain conscious for some brief time longer, and hopefully the Digimon would have stopped by then and he could perhaps find a means of escape.

Rainey, resigned to this kidnapping, lay there, relatively motionless, his head and legs bobbing up and down slightly as the spider skittered through the treetops. He noticed that he could see a patchwork of leaves and sunlight, shining brilliantly on his face. He realized it had been a long time since he'd seen the sun, other than the muted and dull half-light it provided in these dark woods. The warm sun kissed his face in the brief moments it would flash over him, and Rainey found that he was able to take some small comfort in this.

He closed his eyes, relishing the split seconds here and there when a mote of heat would travel across his face, instilling hope within him and an anticipation of the next beam. The wind rushing through his hair had a certain relaxing feature to it, and Rainey found that, though he could still feel his energy draining, though he still felt squeezed tightly in this web tourniquet, everything seemed to fade away, and he seemed to be floating. It was as if he was lying on his back, floating on the air, flying forward through time and space without a care.

He lost himself in his daydreams for some time, and still the Digimon sped on. He snapped back into reality as the creature jostled him lightly. He had no idea how long he'd been unconscious to what was going on around him. He had far less energy than he had before, though he found he had a modicum of strength left.

With his return to reality, he noticed that his arms felt cramped and sore from being tight and still for so long. No matter how long he'd been on this spider's back, it felt like endless ages.

He decided to try to kick his legs, hoping to startle the spider enough that it might loosen its hold on him. However, he found that his legs were nonresponsive. It felt as if they'd both fallen asleep, and only with great concentration was he able to move one. Even then, it tingled unpleasantly all through his leg muscles, and the movement was as though he was moving in a sea of molasses. Rainey quit trying to move his leg, panting slightly at what had felt a herculean effort.

This normally mundane task of moving one's leg had become a true challenge, and Rainey began to fear even more. Whatever it was that was affecting him from the Digimon's web, it had sapped nearly all his energy. He felt sleepy despite having awoken not long before, and his eyelids began to droop.

He shook his head, an act that felt more like pushing against a heavy weight than how it should have felt. He would do everything he could to stay awake.

Several minutes later, some unknown distance further into the forest, the beast carrying him began to slow. It quickly slowed to a stop, and then there was a sickening drop as it leapt to the ground. It landed with surprising lightness on the forest floor, and Rainey could see from his perch atop the beast that they were in front of a massive cobweb that seemed to ensnare a large portion of the forest in its sticky mass. Rainey wanted to cry out at the enormous spider lair, but he found he was unable to. He had nearly lost all his energy, and even staying conscious was becoming a challenge.

Dokugumon shifted her tiny prey from her back where she'd been carrying it. She scuttled forward and set the tightly bound child in the web. The sticky web instantly clung to whatever it touched, and she knew that she could leave the boy there while she tended to things. Her web was strong as steel, and there was no way this pitiful child could free itself.

She scurried forward, ducking under the mass of web and into the hazy, diffused light beneath. She had formed this home long ago, and had fortified it over the years. There was an unexpectedly large expanse within the gossamer lair.

She rounded several tree trunks and then she saw them: Her babies. There were three of them. They were much smaller than Dokugumon, but were very similar in appearance. They bore the same mask but without the horns. They had the same shock of red hair. Their legs were all covered in only black fur, though rather than hands their front legs were simply smaller and contained red claws as the rest did. Their rear was black and yellow striped, and their eyes were blue instead of green. These were her children, these KoDokugumon.

"My babies!" she cried happily as the little Digimon chirped excitedly at her arrival.

"Well well, it's about time," came a familiar voice, and from behind a nearby tree trunk stepped Impmon. "Did you get the kid?"

"I did," Dokugumon confirmed.

"Good," Impmon smiled.

"I am very gracious to Lord Myotismon for such a gift," Dokugumon groveled, lowering her head as best she could.

"Don't mention it," Impmon quipped apathetically. "You're doing us a favor offing this kid. In exchange, Myotismon will leave your territory alone."

"A gracious gift," Dokugumon replied reverentially.

Impmon leaned against a tree and yawned. "I guess I'll get out of your hair in a minute. Don't let me stop you from eating."

Dokugumon nodded. "Come, my babies," she said to the KoDokugumon, who chirped excitedly and scurried along behind her as she led the way back out of the den.

Rainey had barely clung to his consciousness, though his vision had become blurry and unfocused. He noticed something large moving below, and he looked at it, trying his best to concentrate. His vision faded in and out of focus, but he recognized the large, spider-like form nonetheless. He knew the Digimon must have returned to finish him off. He noticed the Digimon was flanked by several others, seemingly smaller versions of itself.

The taught web beneath him shook as the creatures mounted it and began to climb toward him. Rainey couldn't even feel horrified. It was all he could do to remain as vaguely conscious as he was right now.

And then the world faded from view, as he lost the battle and succumbed to the darkness.

* * *

It felt like he would never wake up. Everything was darkness. He couldn't tell if his eyes were closed or if there was simply no light. He didn't feel anything.  
Slowly he became aware that something was touching him. Something wet. It felt like . . . his head was under water?

Slowly he began to be aware of his surroundings. He was lying in the dirt, with twigs and leaves scattered about. There was cool air all around him. He felt no warmth from the sun. His arms had some sort of sticky film upon them. His face was wet, dripping water, though the rest of him was dry.

He tried to open his eyes. His eyelids felt heavy and he had trouble opening them for several moments. Finally, they slowly opened to slits. He could see nothing but dark, vague shapes. He forced his eyes to open further, and the world grew somewhat less hazy.

He waited for several moments with half-open eyes, staring ahead, waiting for the world to come back into focus. Slowly, very slowly, his eyes adjusted to the darkness.

He realized that he was in the forest still. Some time had passed, and there seemed to be little sunlight left, if any. The day was nearing its end.

Rainey tried to move, but found he could not. He let out a weak groan, and began focusing on moving his fingers.

"Stay still," a voice told him, and into view strode a familiar face.

"Cameron?" Rainey croaked. His voice was hoarse, his mouth and throat dry. He barely had the energy to form his words, and his apparent dehydration made his voice sound thin and raspy.

Cameron smiled gravely at him. "I didn't know if you were going to wake up. We could barely feel a pulse."

DemiDevimon fluttered into view. Rainey's heart leapt at the sight of his two friends. "Is my brother with you?" Rainey asked weakly.

Cameron and DemiDevimon frowned and exchanged looks. "No," DemiDevimon said. "We thought he was with you."

"He left to go with you," Rainey choked out. "He didn't come back."

Cameron frowned and took in this tidbit of information. He realized that Rainey was doing all he could to speak now, and though he was interested to cross check Rainey's story against his own and figure out what had happened, he needed to get Rainey some nourishment first.

"Sorry, but I threw water on your face," Cameron muttered, walking out of Rainey's sight and returning presently. He was carrying the bag of fruit that Rainey had left behind when he'd been kidnapped.

With that realization, Rainey remembered the giant spider ensnaring him in its web and coming to eat him. He could barely feel his body – an aftereffect of the poison, he now realized – but as far as he could tell, he was intact. He tried to glance around, and if he looked above his head as much as he could, he could just make out the webbed enclosure the Digimon had brought him to and stuck him on earlier.

"I thought that spider was going to eat me?" Rainey asked, his mind moving much faster than his body could.

Cameron was solemn. "It would have, if DemiDevimon and I hadn't gotten here in time."

Rainey looked from one to another, a sense of great gratitude stealing over him.

"What happened?" he asked.

"Here, you need to eat," Cameron replied, holding a piece of fruit up to his face. Rainey wanted to hear the story but knew the truth of Cameron's words and bit into the fruit. It was surprisingly difficult to bite through the skin of the fruit. These had never been particularly tough fruits, but with his energy drained by the spider's web, he was having trouble with everything but sitting still. He managed to bite off a small piece, the juice running down his water-soaked chin, and laboriously attempted to chew it. The juice was delicious, a welcome addition to his parched mouth. He felt slightly reinvigorated by it and chewed the piece of fruit slowly but eagerly, swallowing the mushy mass and feeling a small amount of energy return to him.

Cameron continued to feed him, as he certainly hadn't enough energy to sit up and eat, or even to hold the fruit himself. While Cameron fed him, DemiDevimon continued the story.

"We were traveling, looking for clues about the Digital World. We had come upon this forest, and we were walking along when we heard your voice call out the name of some Digimon. We saw a big Digimon pass by overhead and decided to follow it. It was tough because I had to Digivolve from DemiMeramon in order to keep up with it better and by that time the trail was already going cold. We chased the Digimon as best we could, but we lost the trail and you stopped yelling.

"We were lucky enough that we saw the big web through the trees. We rushed to it and saw you stuck there with the big spider and some little spiders crawling toward you. I Digivolved to Vilemon and used my Nightmare Shocker attack to take out the little spiders. The big spider was so mad that it forgot about you."

"Vilemon fought it for a long time," Cameron cut in. "It was a really tough fight, and the Digimon fought viciously, but Vilemon was finally able to defeat it."

DemiDevimon looked proud. Rainey, who had by now managed to eat several small pieces of fruit, smiled gratefully at him.

"After that, we got you down from the web," Cameron continued. "Vilemon reverted back to DemiDevimon and tried to pick at the web. We were lucky to get some help." At that, he looked at someone, just out of Rainey's sight.

Rainey's heart leapt. Perhaps it was another one of his friends that had come to find them. He strained to see who this new person was, but there was no need.

Impmon strode into view. "Lucky I was able to find ya," he said with a wink.

Rainey didn't know what to think. His immediate reaction was that of thanks, because he now knew he hadn't been abandoned by his new partner. However, this was mixed with resentment for all the times Impmon had mistreated him recently and for him having been gone for so long this morning when Rainey woke up.

"We heard Impmon here calling your name, and when we found him he said he'd been looking for you. He was shocked that you'd been kidnapped. He used his fire attack to help get you out of those webs and he went to get these fruits that we're giving you now. He was really concerned."

Impmon smiled conceitedly. "All in a day's work for a Digimon."

"He told us what Lopmon did," DemiDevimon said sadly. Rainey was confused, and he saw a flash of tension steal over Impmon's face. It was only for the briefest of moments, but it had been there.

"What's that?" Rainey asked, his words garbled by the fruit he was currently chewing.

"You know," Cameron said tentatively. "How he told you he didn't want to be your partner anymore and left you alone."

Rainey took in this misinformation for several seconds. He swallowed the chunk of fruit he'd been chewing and turned his eyes slowly upon Impmon. The Digimon deftly avoided his gaze.

Rainey had trusted Impmon a great deal on this journey. He'd even allowed Impmon to convince him to leave Lopmon behind, a fact that had haunted Rainey ever since. Despite this, despite Impmon's growing distance and cold attitude, Rainey had still maintained trust for him.

It had been hard to stick with Impmon the last few days. What had begun as a friendship for them had seemingly turned into a hardship for Impmon, and Rainey had felt lonelier than he had in his entire life. Yet still, Rainey put his faith in the little Digimon.

In this moment, that unwavering faith was shattered. He didn't know what Impmon was trying to gain by lying to his friends, but it was most certainly a lie. Rainey might have been acting irrationally, but he remembered what had happened.

Suddenly Impmon became transparent to him. Rainey suddenly realized that, while Lopmon had indeed grown jealous of the relationship Rainey was building with Impmon, it was Impmon who had pushed Rainey to mistrust and accuse Lopmon of all his wrongdoings. Lopmon had voiced his concern, but Impmon was the one who was constantly telling Rainey that they didn't need Lopmon, trying to convince Rainey that Lopmon was hiding something, that he was mean.

Rainey realized what a fool he'd been. This Digimon had manipulated him into abandoning his own partner. Now Lopmon was out there somewhere, all alone, and would probably never forgive him. Rainey wanted to cry, he felt so stupid and embarrassed.

He also wanted to hit Impmon.

He realized he didn't have enough strength in his body. He would need to eat some more food, probably drink some more water, and most likely get some sleep, before he could even think about moving normally again. In his weakened state, he realized he needed to let Impmon keep up his ruse. Not for long, just for now.

That night they stayed where they were. It had indeed been evening when Rainey had regained consciousness. Despite having been unconscious the better part of the day, Rainey felt like he hadn't slept in He ate the entirety of the fruit Cameron offered him and found he could move around weakly. Impmon was sent on an errand to find and bring back some water, which he did, and Rainey had eaten another piece of fruit. After that, he fell quickly into a deep sleep, troubled with dreams of his partner, alone against the elements, somewhere out there.

He awoke to the dull light streaming through the canopy as it always did, illuminating everything in a bleak grey. He found that he had enough strength to prop himself up, and slowly pulled himself to his feet. His muscles were tense and sore, like he'd gone to the gym after a year of inactivity.

He saw that Cameron was packing up what meager supplies they had between them, with DemiDevimon fluttering around helpfully. Impmon was gone. Rainey hoped he'd had the decency to slip away in the night.

Rainey finally got his first good look at their surroundings. He saw that here the trees were slightly taller than they were in the rest of the forest, and before him was a massive web structure, the size of a small house. It wrapped around and through the trunks of many trees, creating a sphere of enclosed space beneath its sticky, poison-laden structure.

Rainey breathed a sigh of relief. He'd been far too close to being spider food, and he was all too keen to put distance between himself and this place.

"Are we ready to get going?" Rainey asked.

"Just about," responded Cameron.

"We can't leave without Impmon," added DemiDevimon.

Rainey's heart fell. "Listen, you guys –"

He stopped short when Impmon strode into view. "Ready to go?" he asked Cameron. Cameron nodded.

"Where are we going?" Rainey asked, a nervous knot in the pit of his stomach. He felt he wasn't quite prepared for this confrontation, but it was now or never.

Impmon smiled at him, but Rainey could see that he now held tension in his face and body. Impmon knew that Rainey knew. He'd known this standoff was coming as much as Rainey had.

"We're going where we've always been going," Impmon said, his carefree voice sounding forced and unnatural.

"And where is that?" Rainey said, his voice rising in volume as he grew angrier and braver. "You've never once told me where we were going."

"We're going to find your brother, of course," Impmon said, his smile unwittingly fading.

Rainey feared he'd been trumped for a moment, but recovered. "Why can't we go find Lopmon first?"

Cameron and DemiDevimon were now thoroughly confused, particularly as this last part conflicted with the lie they'd been told by Impmon.

"He's gone, kid," Impmon snarled, still trying to seem carefree and kind. "He's not coming back."

"Really?" Rainey shot back. "I think maybe he is. I think maybe he cared a lot more than you said he did. I think he was just looking out for me, and you convinced me to leave him behind!"

Impmon was enraged. His fingers curled into a fist, which shook as he tried to fight back the urge to blast this kid with his Bada Boom attack.

"Fine, I'll tell you!" Impmon blurted. "I wasn't totally honest with you. It's true we were always looking for your brother, but the way we're doing that is by going to my master's castle."

Rainey was caught completely off guard by this. He stood staring at Impmon silently, and Impmon continued. "I work for a Digimon named Myotismon. He rules this part of the Digital World. He heard about what you guys did on File Island and to that Etemon punk, and he sent me to bring you to him so he could thank you for making the DigiWorld a better place. By the time I got to you, you'd all been split up. I knew that Myotismon would know where to find you all, so I wanted to take you, Rainey, to him so that you could relax in his castle while I went out and gathered up your friends."

Rainey was speechless. Had Impmon truly been so altruistic all along?

"That's where we're going," Impmon finished firmly. "Now let's go."

He began to walk off, and Cameron and DemiDevimon started to follow. Rainey stood rooted to the spot. He didn't know whether or not to believe Impmon. He'd first found Impmon to be a cool new friend, but then felt neglected by him. Impmon seemed to know everything and have everyone's best interest at heart, but then why would he lie about Lopmon?

"No!" Rainey declared loudly. Impmon, DemiDevimon, and Cameron all stopped and turned to look at him. "No, I'm not going anywhere with you!"

Impmon looked panicked, and he strode toward Rainey with his palms up. "Come on, Rainey," he appealed. "Be reasonable. I'm helping you here."

"You're not helping," Rainey declared bluntly. "You're lying to my friends and I don't trust you."

"You don't trust me?" Impmon said, a convincing look of hurt on his face. "Me, who has been protecting you and helping you find food and water for days?"

Rainey wasn't sure. It was true; Impmon had been taking care of him. If he'd had ill will toward Rainey, he could've just left him to fend for himself in the middle of the dark forest. But Rainey just didn't feel he could trust him anymore, and he knew he needed to stand his ground.

"That's right," Rainey said at last. "I don't trust you anymore."

Impmon stared blankly at him for several moments before turning away. "Fine. Have it your way. But I'm going to Myotismon's castle one way or another and your friends are coming with me."

"Cameron, no!" Rainey called. "You can't go with him."

Cameron looked very troubled.

"Cameron," Impmon began, "I know what you've been looking for. I know you realize that there are answers to your questions. I know where you can find all the answers you're looking for. My master Myotismon is the smartest Digimon in all DigiWorld. He can tell you everything you want to know."

Cameron was torn. He looked from Impmon to Rainey. Rainey felt he was going to cry. He stomped his feet and looked imploringly into Cameron's eyes. "You can't go with him. He's a liar. You can't trust him."

Cameron stared back at Rainey a long time before walking toward him. He bent down to Rainey's eye level and put his hands on Rainey's shoulders. "I know you're worried, but if he really has the information I've been looking for, I have to follow him and find out."

Rainey let out a sob, the tears finally falling down his face. "You're going to leave me?"

Cameron closed his eyes and thought hard. "We're not actually far from the edge of the forest. If you go that way, you'll be out of here in half a day." He pointed off behind Rainey. "It's the way DemiDevimon and I came from. It'll get you out of here."

"Don't go with him," Rainey wept.

"Listen," Cameron said, his voice soothing, "I understand that you don't trust him, but I've got to take this risk if I want to learn what I need to learn. I'll be on the lookout and I'll make sure to keep an eye on Impmon. DemiDevimon is with me, and he'll protect me if anything goes awry."

Rainey couldn't believe what was happening. He simply stared blankly into Cameron's face, the tears streaming freely down his cheeks. Cameron stared back into his eyes with concern and pain, but with an underlying determination that was clearly unshakeable. He gave Rainey's shoulders a comforting squeeze, turned, and rejoined Impmon. He, DemiDevimon, and Impmon all walked away.

Rainey watched them go through watery eyes. He stood still long after their forms faded into darkness, the sound of his cries being absorbed into the endless wood around him.


	29. The Castle

Begun 4:52pm on Saturday, January 14, 2012

Completed 12:05am on November 24, 2012

**Previously in Digimon: Digital Monsters**

This is Rainey speaking. I was wandering around a dark forest with Impmon. I missed Lopmon a lot and tried to find him, but Impmon kept getting mad and saying it was useless. I woke up to find myself alone and then I got kidnapped by a big spider called Dokugumon. She took me back to her home and was going to feed me to her babies when I was rescued by Cameron and Vilemon. Impmon showed up and I realized he was lying to Cameron and DemiDevimon about what had happened between me and Lopmon. I confronted him and Impmon, Cameron, and DemiDevimon left me all alone.

**CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE**

**The Castle**

They had been walking for some time. The canyons rose all around them, obscuring much from view. Kunemon had Digivolved for a while the previous day to fly around as Kuwagamon with Adam on his back and get a better vantage point. All they could report was that they were approaching the end of the cliffs, and that the forest they'd seen on the other side of the lake seemed more massive than previously thought, as it apparently extended far off and wrapped around in front of them. By their estimate, they would be there sometime later today.

The eleven travelers were weary. It felt as though they'd never had a chance to stop and rest since first arriving in the Digital World, particularly not since Blake and Gizamon had vanished through the vortex. Blake and Conomon agreed with this assessment, and although they'd gotten to spend a brief time of rest back in the Real World, it had been all too fleeting, and it seemed that their travels had become even more difficult as of late.

When they would finally stop for the night, they would all roundly agree that they'd never felt more exhausted in their lives – which was shocking, as they'd all agreed just as much only the night before. However, their rest was insufficient; the stresses of their journey, their separation, the realization that no one back home knew they were missing – it was all too much. A full night's sleep was a thing of the past, and memories of being fully rested seemed like some sort of misremembered fairy tale. They had even started sometimes having nightmares, mostly about Devimon, Etemon, and the various other horrible evils that had tried very hard to kill them in their short time in the Digital World.

Today they trudged wearily onward. The tips of the trees of the forest had just come into view through the canyon, rising over the gentle curve of the rocky ground before them. This was the very forest they had all been in at one time or another, the forest through which they had traveled to get away from the desert where they'd had their final showdown with Etemon to this new area surrounding the lake. This part of the forest, however, would be new to them all, and the trees here seemed darker, the foliage thicker, the air more ominous than the other side of the forest had been. No one was particularly excited about entering the dark wood, but as they'd all essentially gone everywhere else, it was really the only option left. Plus, Cameron could only have gone in this direction after Casey had left him.

The group moved silently. In the past, they had chatted and joked while walking. The children and Digimon had exchanged stories, learning about their different pasts. However, exhaustion was taking its toll. They would all have preferred to simply sit and relax, to take a day off from their seemingly endless and meandering quest. Their feet ached, their eyes drooped, they yawned frequently, they were grumpy from fatigue, they were sore from sleeping on hard ground, and they were altogether in dismal shape for a long trek on foot. However, despite how badly they wanted to complain, to stop, to throw a tantrum until something could be done, they all held their tongues. The need to find their friends – especially Rainey, who was all alone if Cameron hadn't yet found him – drove them forward, and whenever their resolve weakened, they had only to look at Casey, always leading the group, always moving forward with determination, always driving them to walk just a little longer each day. If nothing else, he was a reminder of what was at stake, and why they must all try to ignore their complaints.

The forest was indeed a dark and foreboding place. Even as they approached its edge, they could only see a few yards in with any clarity. It was as if the canopy of the forest stifled any light, and the shadows they saw inside spoke of only gloom. They stopped and looked at the foreboding wood before them, none daring to speak the discomfort they felt at the prospect of this new, more dangerous-looking part of their journey.

Casey stopped and tilted his head inquisitively. After days of walking, complete exhaustion, and restless sleep broken by nightmares of his younger brother in countless life-threatening situations, Casey worried that his grip on reality was slipping. However, it seemed too clear to have been a hallucination.

"Did anyone hear that?" he asked.

"Hear what?" replied Blake.

Casey held up a hand to silence them, and they all trained their ears toward the forest, standing stock-still and listening.

The sound again. He was sure of it this time. Someone's voice. Calling something. His name.

His breath stopped.

"Rainey!"

He hadn't even truly registered this – the thought to run toward the sound having barely formed – before he found the trunks of the trees rushing past. "Rainey!" he said again, this time a scream that burst from him. A shadowy shape was before him, moving toward him, and slowly, unbelievably, as the figure approached in the oppressive darkness of the forest, Rainey's face became clear.

Casey didn't stop running until he had Rainey in his arms. He fell to the ground, tears of joy and exhaustion bursting forth, flowing freely down his cheeks. He could feel and hear his little brother sobbing happily into his chest, the reunion overtaking them both. The sound of his traveling companions arriving on the scene barely registered, but moments later Kokomon was squeezing into Rainey's arms as well, and Prairiemon wrapped his clawed arms around the two boys sitting on the ground.

The four of them stayed this way for long minutes, unwilling to let one another go after their long separation. Casey could barely believe it. After all this time, he had begun to despair that they would ever find Rainey. He would never allow himself to think the worst, but he knew in the back of his mind the possibility that Rainey had been lost to him was ever present. The relief he now felt was so overpowering that he suddenly felt his eyes droop as the exhaustion of the past few days finally caught up to him.

Everyone else had been calling out to Rainey, adding their own comments at how happy they were to see him, and when Casey finally relinquished his hold on his little brother, the entire group greeted him warmly. After they had all settled down a bit and Rainey and Casey had the chance to wipe their teary eyes, Rainey demanded to know what had happened to Blake and Conomon.

Blake explained yet again their trip to the Real World, how no time had passed since they'd left, how Digimon were the cause of the strange weather back home. Rainey was as amazed as they'd all been, and shared in the sentiment that, either way, he was glad to see Blake and Conomon alive and well.

"But where are Cameron and DemiDevimon?" asked Adam, turning the conversation to Rainey with the question they'd all been avoiding. The group was almost back together, with only these two remaining members to be found.

Rainey's face darkened visibly.

"You've seen him?" Casey asked, dread arising in him from the look in Rainey's eyes.

"Yes," Rainey said. "I saw him just this morning."

Rainey then recounted the tale of his separation from Kokomon. They all knew Kokomon's side of the story, but with Rainey's new insight into Impmon's manipulation, he shed more light on the situation and the mysterious Digimon who had instigated it. He went on to speak of his further travels deep into the forest, how Impmon had refused to allow him to look for or wait for Kokomon to find him, how he had been kidnapped and nearly eaten, how Cameron and Vilemon had saved him, and how they had eventually separated when Rainey refused to follow Impmon anymore and Cameron refused to change his mind about following the Digimon.

The group sat in silence for a moment, absorbing this new information. Could it be true? Would Cameron really have abandoned Rainey to follow a Digimon that Rainey had said couldn't be trusted? It was unbelievable.

"Where did you say they were going?" Meggy finally asked, a grim look on her face.

"They went that way," Rainey pointed back the way he'd come. "At least, I think they did."

"Where were they going?" Prairiemon urged.

"Impmon said he worked for a Digimon named Myotismon," Rainey explained. "He said they were going to Myotismon's castle, and that Myotismon would tell Cameron everything he wanted to know about the Digital World."

They took in this new tidbit as well, beginning to understand the draw it held for Cameron, though still skeptical about his actions.

"Well, we're just going to have to go find him," Blake said at last. They all looked to him. "We've found everyone else. We're all back together, except for Cameron and DemiDevimon. If this Myotismon is as great as Impmon says, then we'll not only find Cameron, but we might find a way home as well. And if he's as bad as Impmon seems, then Cameron will need to be rescued anyway."

"That settles it," Meggy continued. "We can't leave our friend alone."

"Once we find him, we can finally start finding a way home again," Adam agreed.

Casey was unsure. "What if it's a trap?"

They all turned to look at him, and the look on Blake's face showed that he had considered this already. "It doesn't matter. We have to get Cameron back, no matter what."

"We'll be careful," Meggy cut in. "Plus, now that we're all back together, we'll be able to protect one another. With all of us working together, we should be able to find Cameron and stay safe."

They all stood still for a moment, silently taking in this new plan, understanding that this could be a very dangerous mission, realizing that for the first time in a while they would be knowingly walking into danger. And then, without cue, they all turned as Rainey lead them into the forest, back the way he'd come, on into the oppressive gloom that pressed in all around them.

* * *

The castle loomed before him, a towering, imposing structure constructed of grimy, dark grey stones. The sky was dark and overcast, and though the clouds obscured the sun Cameron knew that it was well past noon and that evening would soon blanket the surrounding forest in even deeper shadows than the ones that covered it during the day.

"We're here," Impmon announced unnecessarily. The castle was enormous, imposing, filling Cameron's entire field of vision. He would have to be literally blind to have missed seeing the massive structure before him.

"Myotismon's been waiting for you," Impmon continued. "He knew how curious you were about the nature of the Digital World, and he's anxious to share his knowledge with you."

Something struck Cameron as off about this sentiment. "Why is he so anxious to share it with me?"

"Because it's rare that someone comes along who might actually understand," Impmon replied, smiling broadly. "That's why we had to get you away from your friends – because they would never understand. This is exclusive information."

Cameron felt much better then. It was no doubt that he was mentally capable of grasping complex systems and ideas, and he was particularly well armed to understand those relating to computer systems and programs after years of teaching himself how to program in a number of different programming languages. He'd always been the top of his class, and at an early age he'd taken an IQ test at the urging of one of his teachers. They'd placed him into the gifted program, which took the place of one of his otherwise regularly scheduled class blocks. It was an exclusive group, available only to those who had been chosen for IQ testing, been tested high enough, and whose parents had actually chosen to let them in.

Cameron had always felt that this group had given him a kind of elite status. It wasn't true that his classmates envied him – far from it. While they certainly _should _have given him more respect for having earned such treatment, most kids treated it with mild disinterest, and some even with derision. However, Cameron had attributed himself the respect he deserved enough for all of them, and he knew that as he grew, more people would come to appreciate his mental prowess.

Here was proof positive. After having spent a great deal of time in the Digital World searching for clues about its nature and origins, someone had seen his efforts, understood, and realized that he was worthy of the true nature of the complexity of this place. It was a shame his friends couldn't be here, really. Knowledge is power, and Cameron fully believed in the pursuit of it. His Crest of Knowledge was clearly a perfect match for him. However, after all this time in the Digital World, he'd come to realize that his travelling companions were less interested in the way this fantastic world worked and more interested in the way to get out of it. Cameron certainly understood their desire to return to their normal lives, but when faced with such a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to study something hitherto wholly unknown, there had never been a question of priority as far as he was concerned.

Impmon was staring at Cameron expectantly. Cameron glanced at DemiDevimon, who shot him a look of encouragement. Cameron could tell that his partner was a little uncomfortable with the situation, but was trying to be supportive of Cameron's goals. He flashed a knowing look at his partner before turning to Impmon and nodding.

The doors before them were ornate wooden doors. They looked thick and ancient, and they were wrought in weathered carvings that seemed to depict a story or myth of some sort whose tales were being lost to the passage of time and the erosion from the elements. Impmon snapped his fingers and the doors parted and began to swing open in a slow arc, releasing a creaking groan.

Cameron felt the cool, dank air from inside blow lightly against his face. Impmon walked into the darkness and Cameron followed. DemiDevimon, perched upon Cameron's shoulder, squeezed lightly with his talons as a sign of reassurance – or perhaps an involuntary sign of tension.

"It's okay, DemiDevimon," Cameron said quietly, his voice swallowed by the dark hall they were entering.

The doors began slowly to swing shut, again seemingly of their own volition, and with them the dim light was diminishing.

"Shouldn't we light a match or something?" DemiDevimon asked nervously.

Impmon laughed. "Not a problem." He snagged an unlit torch from the wall as the last beam of light vanished. "Badda Boom!" A small ball of red flame formed above Impmon's pointer finger. He touched it to the torch, which instantly flared to life. The warm, flickering light did more to calm DemiDevimon than it did to actually penetrate the gloom, though the Digimon still glanced warily all around from his perch on Cameron's shoulder.

They walked through the large entry hall for a full minute, Cameron and DemiDevimon peering into the darkness around them as much as possible – Cameron, searching for any new, fascinating discovery, and DemiDevimon, searching for any sign of trouble. Finally, they came upon another set of ornate wooden doors, which creaked open upon their approach. As the doors opened toward them, they were bathed in flickering golden light.

The hall they were approaching was very well lit. Torches, like the one Impmon now carried, lined the columns of the hall, which extended all down its great length. The three entered the great hall and marveled at the sight as the wooden doors slowly closed behind them. The edges of the room and the ceiling still vanished in gloomy shadows, ringing the merry walkway with contrast, but the lighting made all the difference.

At the end of the hall was a beautiful golden throne carved with gorgeous designs and adorned with red velvet cushions, and in that throne sat a figure. Cameron was shocked at how incredibly human the man in the chair looked.

"Welcome," said the figure, smiling with glinting white teeth. His voice was deep and silky smooth, and he stood to greet the newcomers.

He stood very tall, much taller than a grown man, and was extremely thin. He was dressed in a luxuriously deep midnight blue coat and matching pair of pants, the coat adorned with golden thread lining and shiny gold buttons, below which his waist was cinched with a tight black belt. He wore large black boots that came to his shins, adorned with shining silver emblems evocative of skulls on the toe of each. The coat was hemmed at the wrist, revealing silky green, also sporting shining golden buttons, above clawed hands with long, thin fingers hidden in black gloves. The coat's poufy shoulders had little bat symbols embroidered in crimson. He wore a long black cape with red silk on the interior side, with a collar that extended far around the sides and back of his head, and which was clasped at his neck with a large, ornately carved golden bat with leering ruby eyes. His face was pale white, like glue, and he wore a red mask across his eyes, which had stylized bat wings extending off to the sides. A few strands of his straight, slicked back blonde hair fell down across his eyes and mask.

"This is the child you were asking about, Lord Myotismon," Impmon said, bowing low. "The Child of Knowledge."

"Cameron," Myotismon said, surprising Cameron a little that he already knew his name. "Welcome to my castle."

Cameron bowed, imitating Impmon. DemiDevimon, not having expected this, reacted unthinkingly by clutching harder to Cameron's shoulder, digging his talons into his shoulder slightly and causing him to wince in pain. "Thank you for welcoming us," Cameron said, managing to avoid sounding as if he was pained.

"Impmon has been watching you and your friends," said Myotismon, "reporting back to me on your actions. I have been waiting to see if I should make contact with any of you, and finally decided to welcome you to my castle."

Cameron smiled and thanked Myotismon again for his kindness before the humanoid Digimon continued. "I know there are many questions in your mind about this Digital World, and while I cannot offer all the answers, I know that I can open your mind to a whole host of new ideas." Myotismon smiled at Cameron again, and this time Cameron noted the glint of sharp, pointed canine teeth.

"That's exactly what I've been looking for this whole time," Cameron said hungrily, eliciting an even greater smile from Myotismon.

"Wonderful!" the Digimon exclaimed. "Then why wait? If you're ready, we can begin immediately."

Cameron looked at DemiDevimon for a moment. His Digimon partner was still tense and grim-faced, seemingly afraid of this castle and its inhabitants. DemiDevimon would love nothing more than them taking several hours to rest and recuperate before proceeding, that was clear. Honestly, Cameron thought, DemiDevimon would probably prefer that they left right then and never turned back. But then, DemiDevimon had never shared Cameron's penchant for knowledge and exploration, and surely he could go and rest on his own if it was truly too much for him.

"Absolutely I'm ready," Cameron responded.

Myotismon's smile had grown so large now that it threatened to become grotesque, and his pointed, vampiric teeth glinted in a vaguely unsettling way. He gestured grandly to yet another ornate door behind him, this one with gold leaf trim, and it began to open, as if at his wordless command. "Through there are the answers you seek."

Cameron peered into the unlit room beyond. He felt DemiDevimon squeeze his shoulder lightly. _Don't, _he was surely saying. _Let's leave. Let's forget this. Let's find the others and leave this behind._

But Cameron was not so easily scared, and though the room had a somewhat ominous feel to it, he knew that he could not deny the promise that lay therein. So he mustered his courage and stepped forward, walking past the towering humanoid who ruled this place, through the doors, and into the darkness beyond.

"Good," Myotismon said from behind him. "Now I will leave you, and soon you will have a whole new understanding of things."

Cameron looked back in time to see the doors close behind him and catch a last glimpse of Myotismon and his subordinate, Impmon. He found himself alone, DemiDevimon still perched atop his shoulder, in almost complete darkness. There was a dim, bluish hue mysteriously glinting off the cold, damp stones of the room. It was a stark contrast to the warm yellow light of the well-lit hall they'd just left.

Cameron could feel that DemiDevimon was at the height of tension. He reached up to awkwardly pat him, attempting to be encouraging. "It's okay, buddy. This is why we're here." _It has to be._ DemiDevimon did not respond, but Cameron could tell that it was only because his partner had stopped himself from saying one of the many things that must be storming through his mind.

They stood in the relative darkness, waiting – for what, no one knew. Cameron briefly considered knocking on the door through which they'd just come to ask if a mistake had been made, but then DemiDevimon somehow tensed even further, digging the point of his claws into Cameron's shoulder.

"What's that?" he asked tremulously.

Cameron looked about, but saw nothing. "What's what?"

"That sound!"

They stood still and silent, listening to the darkness. A few moments passed before Cameron heard the sound that DemiDevimon must have been mentioning. A strange sort of hissing sound.

"I hear it," Cameron muttered, "but I don't know –"

He stopped short. His mind was . . . cloudy. He felt sluggish, disoriented. He was suddenly aware of a reddish tint at the edges of his vision – no, it wasn't his vision. It was all around. It was in the _air._

"Some kind of . . . gas . . . or mist, or . . ."

He looked to see if DemiDevimon had heard him in time to see his partner's eyes droop. DemiDevimon's grip loosened and he suddenly fell from Cameron's shoulder. Cameron grabbed for him to stop his fall, but his movements were slow, so slow, and he did little to help as DemiDevimon fell to the stones at his feet. But suddenly Cameron felt that he himself was in danger of losing consciousness. He tried to preempt a fall by lowering himself to the ground but he was dizzy, the room was spinning, filling with the strange red mist.

The last thing that passed through his mind was the image of Myotismon and Impmon as the doors slowly closed, both smirking knowingly, darkly, triumphantly.

And then the door closed, and the darkness flooded in.

* * *

The sun had nearly set by the time they arrived at the castle. They'd walked briskly, balancing exhaustion with urgency, knowing that every second they wasted potentially brought them a second closer to being too late. Now the castle was before them, silhouetted against a sky of pinks and purples, a warm orange line drawn across the horizon to prove the sun had been there.

The grimy stone walls they faced looked to be in disuse. They'd originally seen the castle from the front, where a large, weathered, wood door was firmly closed. After some heated debate about whether or not they should try to burst in there and fight their way through, with a few suggestions that they should knock and see what happened sprinkled in, they'd ultimately decided to try and sneak in another way. They skirted the plateau upon which the massive castle stood, hugging the tree line for cover.

The castle stood ominously at the edge of the plateau, but it appeared to have quite a large courtyard with numerous other buildings presumably inside. There had been battlements and guard towers along the walls at one point, though they appeared to have fallen to a level of disrepair, and though the kids scanned warily for any sign of movement, none was seen.

They decided to try to scale the wall. Supposing that Cameron was somewhere in the castle, the plan was to sneak into it and try to keep their presence minimal and unnoticed until they could find and escape with him. In order to get inside, they'd need to find some kind of weakness in the wall, or scale it, and after Rabbitmon had zipped around, hugging the base of the wall to avoid being seen by any hidden sentries, she returned to report that there were no openings.

So now they found themselves with their current plan. Rabbitmon would use her jumping ability to leap to the top of the towering wall, with Kunemon riding on her back. Kunemon would then turn and spin a sticky thread from the top of the wall to the ground to serve as a rope for the rest to climb. The suggestion that Kunemon could evolve to Kuwagamon and carry them up in two or three trips had been made, but that seemed too obvious, which led to Rabbitmon preparing herself for what was easily the mightiest leap of her life.

She was at the base of the wall, staring up at it, flexing her muscles and mentally running through the jump she was about to make. Kunemon crawled atop her back, gripping gently with his spindly blue legs. Kunemon's wormlike body wasn't particularly heavy, but it would still be an additional challenge that Rabbitmon usually had no need to account for.

The rest of the kids and Digimon watched anxiously from the deepening darkness of the forest's edge. Becca found herself between Meggy and Adam, both of whom had their eyes glued to their respective partners, concern playing across their faces. She reached out on either side to hold their hands comfortingly.

"Ready when you are," Kunemon whispered, his nerves coming through his tremulous.

"Alright," Rabbitmon said. "Here we go!"

They exploded from the ground, like a rocket taking off toward the sky. Kunemon was sure he'd never moved this quickly, even flying on his own wings as Kuwagamon. The wind whistled past and the ground fell away at a sickening speed, and Kunemon wished his current form had wings. The grimy, moss-covered stones of the castle wall whizzed past dizzyingly as the battlements went from being impossibly out of reach to strikingly near.

And then they were slowing, the momentum of the leap wearing off as gravity began to take over. And then they were stopping, reaching the apex of the jump, about to begin their descent back to earth, and Kunemon felt his stomach lurch as momentum and gravity were momentarily at odds.

And the battlements were just ten feet above them.

So close. So painfully close. And in that moment, Kunemon knew that they had missed, and that the return trip to the hard ground was not going to be pleasant. Rabbitmon knew it too, because he heard her gasp, "Oh no!"

Kunemon knew what he had to do. On the ground, the top of the wall had been inconceivably far away, but Rabbitmon's heroic leap had changed that, and Kunemon realized, in that sickening instant, that the distance was no longer too great.

"Hang on!" Kunemon cried, squeezing his needle legs sharply into Rabbitmon so as not to lose his grip, eliciting a sharp gasp of pained surprise. Kunemon took a quick gasp of air, aimed for the battlements, and fired a string of sticky thread towards his target. As the two Digimon began their descent back to earth, Kunemon felt the thread connect and the adhesive grab hold. _Yes!_ he thought triumphantly, and began sucking the thread in, pulling himself and Rabbitmon closer to the top.

The downward momentum they had begun to gain was halted and transferred as they now swung like a pendulum – straight at the brick wall. "Hang on, yourself!" Rabbitmon called as they sped toward the flat, imposing surface of the wall. Rabbitmon prepared her leg muscles for impact, thankful that they'd been made to handle the return to earth from herculean leaps. They slammed painfully into the wall, and Rabbitmon gritted her teeth to shield Kunemon from the reality that her legs were electric with tingling pain. But they were safe, relatively unharmed, and even though Rabbitmon had not been able to leap to the top of the wall as she'd thought, she had somehow succeeded in at least getting them close enough for Kunemon to finish the job.

Inch by inch, Kunemon pulled them safely to the top of the battlement. As soon as she was close enough, Rabbitmon scrambled over the top and collapsed in exhaustion, panting from the fear and exertion she'd just experienced. Kunemon pulled himself over before clasping a claw across her face to silence her.

"Shh!" he hissed, and pointed with a free leg to the courtyard below.

The adrenaline pumping through her had been enough to make her oblivious to the world around her, but now she heard it: The unmistakable sound of grunts, roars, growls, and other beastly sounds. And above it all, someone yelling orders. Her gaze followed Kunemon's direction and she saw it. In the courtyard, which was hedged on all sides by the wall they'd just scaled, was a veritable army.

Massive monsters of all shapes and sizes were doing what seemed like various drills as an orb of a Digimon barked orders and threats at them.

"This isn't good," Kunemon whispered.

"No. No it is not." Rabbitmon agreed darkly.

"What should we do?"

Rabbitmon shrugged. "What else can we do? We've got to rescue Cameron, one way or the other."

It was clear that they had to continue with the plan, so Kunemon began spinning a sticky thread that extended down to the base of the wall. Once it had reached sufficient length – an exhausting task, to produce that much at once, and after having made some already in a heart-stopping save – Kunemon cut through his end and attached it to the battlement where they waited.

Slowly, one at a time, the children and Digimon crept from their hiding place and began to scale the wall. Rabbitmon and Kunemon stood anxiously at the top, trying to stay low while still staying visible, and as the first child reached the top – Meggy, as it turned out – they put paw and claw to their lips to tell her to be quiet. She looked at them strangely but complied, and stifled a gasp of her own when she reached the top and saw what they had seen.

The rest of the group continued in much the same way, but they were all successful in remaining silent and in staying still, quiet, and unseen once they'd arrived at the top. Finally, when Blake arrived, huffing and puffing with Conomon perched on his back, all twelve of them had assembled and, once Blake had experienced the initial shock they'd all had upon first seeing the army, they finally took a moment to truly observe it.

There were giant beasts, evil looking humanoid creatures, and all manner of winged, tentacled, spiked, hairy, slimy, nasty looking things. Most of the creatures below were of a specific species of Digimon which Meggy and Rabbitmon identified as Bakemon. Otamamon claimed to have heard about the orb-shaped Digimon directing them as well, calling him Nanimon.

Nanimon was small, much smaller in fact than most Digimon present in the yard. He was shaped like a bowling ball with arms and legs. The arms and legs were muscular, his hands in red gloves with a star on them and his feet in similar boots, a star on the top and colored blue on the back half. He had hair around the back of his orb-shaped head-body, but was bald on the top apart from one wavy hair that stuck up from the very top of his head. The coarse brown hair was also present in his armpits, on his face in a circle beard, and in thick angry eyebrows. The beard encircled his lips, which were puckered in contempt but which seemed to be covered in shiny red lipstick, and his eyes were hidden behind a pair of futuristic looking sunglasses that wrapped around his head despite the deepening dark of the early evening.

"What should we do?" Meggy asked, clenching her fists.

Becca's voice was tremulous and fearful. "We can't fight them all!"

"No way," agreed Blake.

"Definitely not," Casey added. "Even if we were at full strength we probably couldn't handle all of those guys – I mean, most of them we've never even seen before."

"Who knows what they could do," Adam interjected.

"Exactly," continued Casey. "And we're not even as strong as we could be. Conomon and Kokomon both have to Digivolve just to get to their Rookie stages, and we're missing Cameron completely. Our main goal is to rescue him, keep ourselves safe, and get out of here without starting a fight, and we should stick to that."

Blake smiled. "I couldn't have said it better."

"But what is this army for?" Meggy wondered.

Casey pursed his lips grimly. "Hopefully we'll never find out."

"Let's go," Blake hissed, and began carefully threading his way along the slick, narrow, and in places broken battlement toward the castle. At one point, one of the stones gave way on a particularly decayed and thin patch, and Blake barely managed to stifle a cry as he reached out to steady himself and Adam helped grab him to stop his fall. The stone fell and they held their breaths, but it thankfully crashed into some thick brambles in the shadows of the night and went unnoticed in the din being made by the army of Digimon. Blake pulled himself from the hole his leg had fallen through and took a moment to catch his breath and steady his nerves before continuing to lead the group to the castle.

They made it without further incident, though it was a long and tense process, and when they finally arrived, they were able to slip inside the castle through a narrow guard's door. They found themselves in a cramped stairwell leading down into the shadowy depths of the castle.

"We're in it now," Blake sighed quietly to himself, and was thankful that his partner Conomon was riding on his shoulders. Rainey, who was holding Kokomon in his arms, clutched him close, and Casey squeezed his shoulder reassuringly. The kids and Digimon all exchanged grim looks before proceeding down the stairwell into the darkness.

Moving slowly and trying not to make a sound on slick stone steps was difficult and time consuming, and it felt like ages before they suddenly found themselves in a small landing opening into a large room.

"We must have arrived on the ground floor," Adam whispered. Meggy nodded in agreement.

The room before them was large, unlit, and consequently filled with menacing shadows. They took furtive steps into the gloom, taking care to make as little noise as possible and painfully aware that the twelve of them made more noise than was comforting. But the still dark of the room remained still, and they proceeded unhindered to the center of the room, where the faint outline of a doorway could be seen leading to the deeper core of the castle. Blake decided to risk a whisper.

"Alright, everyone," he murmured, "I see a door ahead. We'll go through there and then maybe split up to cover more ground. Cameron's got to be somewhere in here –"

He was cut off suddenly as his stomach rose to his throat. The floor beneath them had crumbled, completely, the great stones falling away as easily as if they'd never been solid to begin with. His breath caught as he looked around in a sickening moment of stillness at his friends suspended in air over the dark chasm below them.

And then they fell.


End file.
